Hurricane Ida formed and hit in late August 2021, with impacts lasting into early September 2021.

Here are the key dates:

  • Ida originated from a tropical wave in the Caribbean on August 23, 2021.
  • It became Tropical Storm Ida on August 26, 2021, near the Cayman Islands.
  • It strengthened into a hurricane on August 27, 2021, as it neared western Cuba.
  • Ida reached major Category 4 intensity over the Gulf of Mexico on August 28–29, 2021.
  • The storm made its major U.S. landfall near Port Fourchon, Louisiana, on August 29, 2021.
  • Ida weakened to a tropical depression by August 30, 2021, over land.
  • It became a post-tropical system on September 1, 2021, while moving through the Northeastern U.S., then moved out over the Atlantic on September 2–4, 2021.

In short, when people ask “when was Hurricane Ida,” they usually mean its peak impact window: roughly August 26 to September 2, 2021, with the most significant U.S. landfall on August 29, 2021.