New Orleans evacuates as Hurricane Ida could strengthen to Category 4 with 140 mph winds

Ida could make landfall as a Category 4 hurricane on Sunday when it hits the Gulf Coast with maximum winds of 140 mph, according to the latest forecast from the National Hurricane Center. 

Mandatory evacuations are being ordered in Louisiana on Friday as Ida gains strength in the gulf. 

The storm was about 90 miles southwest of Havana, Cuba around 5 p.m. ET on Friday. Jamaica, the Cayman Islands, and western Cuba will face heavy rains, flash flooding, and mudslides throughout Friday evening. 

Projected to become a Category 4 hurricane, the storm would strike 16 years to the day since Hurricane Katrina made landfall there as a Category 3 storm with 125 mph winds near the riverside community of Buras in Plaquemines Parish.