Welcome to the news hour. The major storm Francine dumped heavy rain along the

southeast today after flooding New Orleans and coastal communities throughout

Louisiana. Francine peaked as a category 2 hurricane and knocked out power for hundreds of thousands of people.

It weakened into what's known as a post-tropical cyclone today.

And there have been no reports of deaths or injuries, but there were dozens of rescues.

Stephanie Sigh has our report.

Hurricane Francine crashed into land last night, drenching Louisiana and sending trees down to Earth.

From the streets of Baton Rouge to a family home in Denham Springs.

The category 2 storm blew winds up to 100 miles per hour.

A lot of wind, a lot of water, a lot of loss of power.

Senator John Kennedy appeared alongside Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry as he briefed reporters this afternoon.

As we begin this recovery, let us care for those family members and our neighbors,

check on them, make sure that they are secure because that is

who we are here in Louisiana. Closer to the Gulf and Homa Louisiana flooding

blurred the lines between land and sea.

In New Orleans, authorities said 52 floodgates were closed to protect against a storm search.

The Federal Emergency Management agency's leader,

Diane Chriswell, was on the ground to inspect the damage. She said the state's

flood protection infrastructure paid off. The amount of money invested in

resilience has really made a difference from the power

outages to the number of homes saved. In Morgan City, Francine ripped roots from the ground.

Governor Landry said at the storm's peak 450,000 people were

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