Beachgoers run for shelter as the rain starts pouring down Saturday, Sept. 3, 2011 in Dauphin Island, Ala. As Tropical Storm Lee continues advancing toward the Louisiana coast, the storm dumps sporadic heavy rain along the coasts. (AP Photo/Kiichiro Sato)
Beachgoers run for shelter as the rain starts pouring down Saturday, Sept. 3, 2011 in Dauphin Island, Ala. As Tropical Storm Lee continues advancing toward the Louisiana coast, the storm dumps sporadic heavy rain along the coasts. (AP Photo/Kiichiro Sato)
Plaquemines Parish, La., President Billy Nungesser, returns to work in the Emergency Operations Center in Belle Chasse, La., after rescuing a seagull he found on the highway with a broken wing, probably caused by high winds from Tropical Storm Lee on Saturday, Sept. 3, 2011. The bird was brought to Audubon Zoo where it is recovering. (AP Photo/P.J.Hahn)
A hotel is reflected in puddles from rain from approaching Tropical Storm Lee on a streetcar track, as a streetcar passes through Lee Circle in New Orleans, Friday, Sept. 2, 2011. Lee formed in the waters off Louisiana on Friday, threatening a drenching along much of the Gulf coast over the Labor Day weekend with up to 20 inches (50 centimeters) of rain in some spots. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
Heavy rain clouds from approaching Tropical Storm Lee form over the skyline of New Orleans and the Crescent City Connection bridges at dusk, Friday, Sept. 2, 2011. Tropical Storm Lee formed in the waters off Louisiana on Friday, threatening a drenching along much of the Gulf coast over the Labor Day weekend with up to 20 inches (50 centimeters) of rain in some spots. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
Heavy rain clouds from approaching Tropical Storm Lee form over the skyline of New Orleans and the Crescent City Connection bridges at dusk, Friday, Sept. 2, 2011. Tropical Storm Lee formed in the waters off Louisiana on Friday, threatening a drenching along much of the Gulf coast over the Labor Day weekend with up to 20 inches (50 centimeters) of rain in some spots. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
JEAN LAFITTE, Louisiana (AP) ? Bands of heavy rain and strong wind gusts from Tropical Storm Lee knocked out power to thousands in Louisiana and Mississippi on Saturday and prompted evacuations in bayou towns like Jean Lafitte, where water was lapping at the front doors of some homes.
The sluggish storm stalled just offshore for several hours before resuming its slow march northward late in the afternoon. Landfall was expected later in the day, and the storm threatened to dump more than a foot (30 centimeters) of rain across the Gulf Coast and into the Southeast in coming days. No injuries were reported, but there were scattered instances of water entering low-lying homes and businesses in Louisiana.
To the east, coffers were suffering at many coastal businesses. Alabama beaches that would normally be packed were largely empty, and rough seas closed the Port of Mobile. Mississippi's coastal casinos, however, were open and reporting brisk business.
The center of the slow-moving storm was about 55 miles (90 kilometers) south-southwest of Lafayette, Louisiana, Saturday evening, spinning intermittent bands of stormy weather, alternating with light rain and occasional sunshine. It was moving north-northwest at about 4 mph (6 kph) in the late afternoon.
Its maximum sustained winds dropped to 50 mph (75 kph), and their intensity was expected to decrease further by Sunday. Tropical storm warnings stretched from the Louisiana-Texas state line to Destin, Florida
The National Weather Service in Slidell said parts of New Orleans received between 6 and 8 inches (15 and 20 centimeters) of rain between Thursday morning and Saturday afternoon, and that coastal Mississippi points reported more than 6 inches (15 centimeters).
Forecasts said that isolated areas could get as many as 20 inches (50 centimeters).
The Entergy utility company reported more than 37,000 customer outages at one point Saturday morning but that was down to below 18,000 by afternoon as the utility restored electricity. Cleco Corp., another major utility, reported 3,500 outages.
In New Orleans, sporadic downpours caused some street flooding in low-lying areas early Saturday, but pumps were sucking up the water and sending it into Lake Pontchartrain. Lee's surge so far had not penetrated levees along the coast, said National Weather Service forecaster Robert Ricks in Slidell, Louisiana.
The storm was denting offshore energy production. The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement said 237 oil and gas production platforms and 23 drilling rigs have been evacuated by Lee. The agency estimates that about 60 percent of the current oil production in the Gulf and almost 55 percent of the natural gas production has been shut in.
Casinos along the coast remained open and reported brisk business despite the storm.
At the Beau Rivage in Biloxi, which was hosting an IBF welterweight title bout Saturday night, resort spokeswoman Mary Cracchiolo-Spain said business was going on as usual.
"We're open for business and we are safe and secure," she said.
In Alabama, rough seas forced the closure of the Port of Mobile. Pockets of heavy rain pounded the beaches Saturday, and strong winds whipped up the surf and bowed palm trees. But just a couple miles (kilometers) inland, wind and rain dropped significantly.
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