NEW ORLEANS (Louisiana) - TROPICAL storm Ida bore down on the US Gulf coast Tuesday, with weakened force after cutting a swath of destruction that left 136 dead in Central America.

Ida was 95 kilometers southwest of Mobile, Alabama at 09:00 Tuesday, moving north at a speed of 15 kilometers per hour with sustained winds of 65 kilometers per hour, the National Hurricane Center in Miami, Florida said.

'A tropical storm warning remains in effect from Grand Isle, Louisiana to the Aucilla River, Florida, including New Orleans and Lake Pontchartrain,' the center said in an advisory.

But it said the storm was weakening in strength as it moved toward the coast. It was expected to make landfall later in the morning. 'We urge people to take precautions and watch their children,' Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal said at a press conference.

Storm tides could be six feet higher than normal, resulting in 'nuisance flooding' on low-lying roads across the Louisiana coastline, Jindal said. And strong winds could snap tree limbs and knock out power, the governor said as trees across New Orleans began to sway under darkening skies.

However, the US Army Corps of Engineers is 'confident' that the vast network of levees, pumps and drainage canals will protect New Orleans from serious flooding, Jindal added. -- AFP