Ida aftermath: New Orleans lifts curfew as more power restored

Hundreds of thousands remain without electricity outside the southern US city 10 days after hurricane hit Gulf Coast.

New Orleans has lifted a nightly curfew as the US city moves closer to regaining full power 10 days after Hurricane Ida, but hundreds of thousands of people outside the city were still without lights and water, and more than a quarter of a million children were unable to return to schools. The city was left completely in the dark when Hurricane Ida slammed into the Louisiana coast with 240 kilometres per hour (150 miles per hour) winds on August 29, cutting power to more than a million people statewide. Two days later, New Orleans Police and Mayor LaToya Cantrell imposed a curfew from 8pm to 6am local time, citing cases of theft and other minor crime. They withdrew the order on Wednesday morning, but the police department said in a statement that it would maintain “increased and focused patrols throughout the city”.