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Hours-of-service flexibility for truckers involved in critical relief efforts is one element of the federal government’s response to Tropical Depression Ida.

Hurricane Ida forced Kansas City Southern to shut its main line in Louisiana and has halted exchanges between railroads in New Orleans, which may worsen delays in a U.S. shipping industry that already is stretched thin.

WASHINGTON — Hurricane Ida is sure to take a toll on the energy, chemical and shipping industries that have major hubs along the Gulf Coast. But the impact on the overall U.S. economy likely will be modest so long as damage estimates don’t rise sharply and refinery shutdowns are not prolonged, economists say.

The port of New Orleans has halted container terminal and break-bulk operations as Hurricane Ida lashes the Louisiana coast with torrential rain and heavy winds.

Some U.S. motorists who had been expecting an end-of-summer relief for gasoline prices should start bracing for higher costs at the pump in the coming days due to Hurricane Ida.

Hurricane Ida is taking aim on New Orleans on the 16th anniversary of Katrina, one of the most devastating natural disasters in U.S. history.

The slow and sprawling storm system named Henri drenched much of the inland Northeast with rain Aug. 23, hampering cleanup efforts and threatening further flooding in areas with ground already saturated from a wet summer.

Preparations for a storm grew more urgent Aug. 21 as the newly upgraded Hurricane Henri closed in on the Northeast.

A quick start to the Atlantic hurricane season saw five storms form so far this year, well ahead of the normal pace of a normal year, before settling into a lull that’s lasted several weeks.

Summer means the start of hurricane season in the Atlantic Ocean and many of the world’s biggest transportation companies are taking steps to prepare for what some forecasters say could once again be above-average activity along the Atlantic Coast and the Gulf of Mexico.