Isaac Back to Tropical Storm, Still Hammering New Orleans

Isaac's winds have dropped just barely under the 74mph hurricane threshold, so it's back to tropical storm status, reports CNN. But that won't mean much to residents of New Orleans and elsewhere still getting lashed by winds and drenched by rain on the seven-year anniversary of Katrina. New Orleans has instituted a dusk-to-dawn curfew because of the slow-moving storm, now about 50 miles west-southwest of the city.

Meanwhile, state officials may purposely breach a levee in hard-hit Plaquemines Parish to relieve water pressure, reports the New Orleans Times-Picayune. Gov. Bobby Jindal says up to 40 people in that area are still waiting to be rescued. More than 725,000 people have lost power in five states, though no deaths have been reported in the US. (More Tropical Storm Isaac stories.)