Hurricane Delta expected to intensify as it heads for Louisiana coast

Hurricane Delta swept across Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula early Wednesday morning, weakening after it made landfall as a Category 2 storm.

Delta strengthened late Tuesday to become a Category 4 storm and was expected to remain that way as it headed for Cancun. But winds peaking at 110 miles per hour and heavy rains only cut electricity to the area, and no injuries were reported after tourists and residents evacuated inland. Delta's brief landfall weakened it further, but the storm is predicted to make a sharp turn and regain steam before arriving in the U.S. Friday as a potential Category 3 storm.

Much of Louisiana's coast is now under a hurricane watch, and parts of Texas and Mississippi's coasts are under a tropical storm watch as of Wednesday afternoon. Delta will be Louisiana's sixth hurricane of the year, likely hitting the area around Lake Charles that was devastated by the Category 4 Hurricane Laura in late August. Around 5,600 are still in hotels after Laura destroyed their homes, The Associated Press reports.

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Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards (D) told coastal residents to prepare for life-threatening storm surge and winds arriving as early as Thursday evening.