Barry spares New Orleans but fuels fears of floods and tornadoes

• Storm briefly attains hurricane strength before weakening
• Authorities counsel continued caution

Tropical Storm Barry dumped rain as it slowly swept inland through Gulf coast states on Sunday, sparing New Orleans a direct hit but stoking fears elsewhere of flooding, tornadoes and prolonged power outages.

Though winds weakened steadily after the storm made landfall on Saturday in Louisiana, rain bands created a flooding and tornado threat from central Louisiana to eastern Mississippi and beyond. Several parishes or counties in both states were under flash flood warnings.