Heavy rains and gusty winds have knocked out power on the U-S Gulf Coast as a strengthening tropical storm Barry churns a path to shore.
Officials predict Barry will make landfall as this year's first hurricane near Morgan City, west of New Orleans, this morning.
More than 45-thousand people in southern Louisiana have already lost power as the edges of the storm lash the region.
Though expected to be a weak hurricane, Barry threatens to cause disastrous flooding across a swath of the Gulf Coast.