>> all right. thank you. so louisiana is currently under a state of emergency and mandatory evacuations aunderway. that's happening? >> reporter: i'm just outside of new orleans about 15 miles east, inside the area protected by the storm defense system that they built up with floodgates just like this when they're about 200 of them in the area. floodgates and bounds that needed to be closed to protect the city of new orleans from any flooding. the it's the area on the other side of these floodgates that are in the mandatory evacuation zones for or leans parish. lake katherine and also irish bayou. i can tell you people are heading the warnings to evacuatevacuate everyone saying these gates were going to be closed by noon. so noon is the time they needed