Hurricane Ida weakens to tropical storm

In this satellite image handout from National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the storm Ida is seen, now downgraded to a tropical storm after moving through an area of cooler sea surface temperatures and increasing shear November 9, 2009 off the coast of Louisiana in the Gulf of Mexico. According to NOAA, strong winds are covering a large area of the Gulf of Mexico and the associated rains are moving well ahead of the center of the storm. Authorities say Ida could make landfall as early as Tuesday morning. Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal declared a state of emergency as a precaution, and the National Guard was on high alert if assistance was needed. (NOAA, Getty Images)

MIAMI (AP) — Ida has weakened to a tropical storm, but warnings remain along 200 miles of the Gulf Coast from Mississippi to Florida.

The U.S. National Hurricane Center reports that the storm weakened early Monday from a Category 2 storm to a Category 1 to its current classification. It now has 70 mph winds.

It could make landfall as early as Tuesday morning. There were no immediate plans Sunday night for mandatory evacuations.

A hurricane warning extended from Pascagoula, Miss., east to Indian Pass, Fla. Tropical storm warnings and hurricane watches are in effect across neighboring areas including New Orleans.

Early Monday, Ida was located 285 miles south-southeast of the mouth of the Mississippi River and moving north-northwest near 16 mph.

©2009 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.