NEW ORLEANS, Louisiana — The upcoming Saints home game may not be played at home next Monday due to the significant weather heading our way.
Sources told the Athletic NFL that contingency plans were put in place Monday after the victory over the Lions that includes an evacuation for the team ahead of Hurricane Delta, to make landfall Friday.
Delta recently made landfall on Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula early Wednesday morning as a Category 2 hurricane.
Saints vs. Chargers will not be the only game affected by the storm.
The LSU and Missouri game was forced to move their Saturday game to Columbia, Missouri instead of in Baton Rouge at Tiger Stadium, with a kickoff now set at 11 am.
If the Saints are forced to leave then a chartered plane will fly them to Indianapolis after their Thursday workout but will return them to New Orleans on Sunday.
Saints coach Sean Payton held a meeting earlier this week advising players and staff to prepare for the possibility of evacuating and to make plans for their families.
150 rooms at a hotel in walking distance from the stadium, have been blocked off for the team.
“We always have contingency plans for all games, We had plans for the wildfires in California last month but never had to act on them. But we will continue to monitor developments in the area. It’s very early in the process,” NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy.
This will not be the first time the Saints have had to utilize Indianapolis facilities to dodge a storm.
In 2008 the team evacuated to Indianapolis for Hurricane Gustav, where they practiced for a week, ahead if their Tampa Bay matchup.
The 1998 team was also stranded in the city, due to Hurricane Georges.
Moving a game to another city is considered a last resort contingency plan because of the logistical issues it can cause for the crew.
Gov. John Bel Edwards on Tuesday declared a state of emergency in advance of Hurricane Delta.
Team and league officials will monitor the storm on Wednesday before deciding in the afternoon whether they will evacuate on Thursday.
This is a developing story, and it will be updated with the latest information available. Stick with WWLTV.com for the latest news.
