Tropical Storm Sally takes aim at Louisiana, still recovering weeks after Hurricane Laura

Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves signed a preliminary state of emergency Sunday,

The storm "is probably going to persist over most portions of the state for basically 48 hours," he said.

Louisiana still recovering from Laura

Sally comes just weeks after Hurricane Laura made landfall as a Category 4, causing widespread flooding and damage in southwest Louisiana and leaving six people there dead.

It carried the same force as a storm from more than 150 years ago, the strongest to ever strike the state. Laura also destroyed power grids, and repairs are anticipated to take weeks, if not months, to complete, officials said.

More than 70,000 people remain without power in southwest Louisiana following Laura, according to Poweroutage.us. At the peak, more than 800,000 customers were without power.

FEMA has approved assistance for 21 parishes impacted by Laura, according to a news release issued Sunday by the governor's office.

Mandatory evacuations ordered across Louisiana

With Sally en route, mandatory evacuations have been issued for part or all of several parishes, including in Orleans.

Some evacuations, including those in New Orleans for those who live outside the levee protection system, were scheduled to go into effect at 6 p.m. local time (7 p.m. ET) Sunday. Most residents live inside the protection system.

Venetian Isles, Lake Catherine and Irish Bayou, which are not protected by substantial levees, could see storm surge of up to 11 feet during Sally, NOLA Ready, the city's emergency preparedness network, said in a tweet.

The city is preparing for Sally by distributing sandbags, getting pumps fully operational and signing an emergency declaration, Mayor LaToya Cantrell said Sunday.

"This is potentially going to be a Category 2 hurricane impacting the greater area in the city of New Orleans," Collin Arnold, director of the New Orleans Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness, warned. "You should be gathering your emergency supplies, three days' worth."

A mandatory evacuation has been ordered in St. Charles Parish, which is home to more than 52,000 residents and located on the banks of the Mississippi River.

"This is a storm everyone needs to take seriously. We are likely to see tropical storm-force and hurricane-strength winds for longer than Hurricane Katrina, a storm surge of 4-7 feet and the possibility of 20 inches of rain," St. Charles Parish President Matthew Jewell said Sunday. "We want residents to heed our warnings and make preparations to leave now."

Plaquemines Parish, where the Mississippi River meets the Gulf of Mexico, announced Sunday that a mandatory evacuation would be ordered for "the entire East Bank ... and on the West Bank from Phillips 66 Alliance Refinery to Venice." Plaquemines Parish also announced a voluntary evacuation "from the community of Oakville to Phillips 66 Alliance Refinery."

Grand Isle in Jefferson Parish is also under mandatory evacuation, as is the community of Port Fourchon in Lafourche Parish.

At least one nursing home has already started evacuating residents, Edwards said. Three jails have also evacuated 1,200 inmates, he said.

Mississippi still assessing risk

Mississippi officials are working to make decisions on possible mandatory evacuations depending on changes in the weather, Reeves said Sunday.

Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey warned residents to stay vigilant.

"While it is currently not being predicted as a direct hit to our coastal areas, we know well that we should not take the threat lightly," Ivey said Sunday. "We offer our prayers and support to our friends in Louisiana as they are expected to once again be in the path of severe weather."