The Department of Housing and Urban Development has laid out new guidelines for the disbursal of $2 billion in disaster-relief bloc grants, with an emphasis on climate-change mitigation and equity for underserved communities.

A camping trailer by a neighboring camp has been damaged by Hurricane Zeta in Grand Isle, La., Friday, Oct. 30, 2020. It hit hard on Grand Isle, a popular waterside getaway and recreational fishing destination. “That thing just souped up and kicked all of our butts, especially the levee,” said Lan Tivet, a member of the Grand Isle town council. It's been an especially active season in Louisiana, hit so far by two tropical storms and three hurricanes, including Laura, which devastated southwestern Louisiana in August. “We're so close to the end of hurricane season that we can't jeopardize — just start a project sooner — it's not an option," she said.

A whopping five named storms -- three hurricanes, two tropical storms -- have made landfall in Louisiana. In 2004, four storms (three hurricanes, one tropical storm) made landfall in Florida. A fifth storm, Hurricane Ivan, brought devastating impacts to the Florida panhandle, but officially made landfall in Alabama. The peak of hurricane season occurs September 10. Hurricane season officially runs through Nov. 30.

Early voting ended Tuesday, so Zeta hasn’t disrupted any voting so far. Early voting ended Tuesday, so Zeta hasn’t disrupted any voting so far. State officials weren’t sure how many of the 336 early voting locations statewide were closed or delayed in opening. ___6:55 a.m.Officials in Georgia say high winds from Tropical Storm Zeta have caused a second death in the South. ___4:00 a.m.A tropical storm warning is in effect in Atlanta as Tropical Storm Zeta makes its way quickly toward the northeast.

A passing car's headlights illuminate a darkened Bourbon Street in the French Quarter of New Orleans, Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2020. Hurricane Zeta passed through Wednesday leaving much of the city and metro area without power. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)NEW ORLEANS – A fast-moving Hurricane Zeta barreled northeast Thursday morning after ripping through Louisiana and Mississippi where storm-weary residents were advised to stay indoors overnight while officials assessed the havoc the storm had wrought. Signs outside bars and restaurants swayed back and forth in the wind and palm trees along Canal Street whipped furiously. On Tuesday, Zeta raked across Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula, toppling trees and briefly cutting power to more than 300,000 people but causing no deaths.

(AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)NEW ORLEANS – The Latest on Zeta (all times CDT):10:45 p.m.WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump has declared an emergency exists in Mississippi and ordered federal assistance be expedited to aid state, local and tribal efforts to recover from Hurricane Zeta. — In Bay St. Louis in Mississippi, former mayor Les Fillingame said Hurricane Zeta was “very intense” when it blew through. ____10 p.m.MIAMI — Hurricane Zeta is weakening further but remains a still-dangerous storm as it barrels across Mississippi into the U.S. Southeast. — Louisiana's governor says Hurricane Zeta has caused extensive structural damage to businesses and homes in hard-hit areas of the state's southeast. School officials are calling off school because of the fear of rain, wind and power outages from Hurricane Zeta as it makes its way inland.

PENSACOLA, Fla. – Early voting locations in several counties in Florida’s Panhandle will be closing as Hurricane Zeta approaches the region. While Hurricane Zeta is expected to make landfall south of New Orleans on Wednesday afternoon, Florida's western Panhandle region is expected to see deteriorating weather conditions throughout day, officials said. The voting locations should return to the normal 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. routine on Friday and Saturday, which is the last day for early voting in Florida. Similar hours have been posted for early voting locations in Santa Rosa County. In neighboring Okaloosa County, Supervisor of Elections Paul Lux said all early voting locations will close at 5 p.m. Wednesday “out of an abundance of caution," as the storm approaches.

Zeta weakened to a Category 1 hurricane with winds of 80 mph (128 kph) as it moved into southern Mississippi few hours after landfall, but forecasters said it remained a life-threatening storm. “Guys, we received the brunt of Zeta, and Zeta gave us a good punch,” McInnis told WDSU-TV. More than 875,000 customers were without electricity in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama, including about 350,000 in metro New Orleans. Before landfall, Zeta’s top winds had risen to just shy of a major, Category 3 storm, according to the U.S. National Hurricane Center. ___Plaisance reported from Laffite, Louisiana, and Santana from Shell Beach, Louisiana.

Zeta is moving toward the east-northeast near 55 mph (89 km/h), and this general motion is expected to continue through tonight. On the forecast track, the center of Zeta will emerge over the western Atlantic this evening. Maximum sustained winds are near 50 mph (85 km/h) with higher gusts. A sustained wind of 39 mph (63 km/h) and a gust to 46 mph (74 km/h) were recently reported at Ocean City, Maryland. RAINFALL: The last of the heavy rainfall along the track of Zeta will impact the Mid-Atlantic through this evening.