Approximately 80 credit unions were forced to close Monday, but many of these credit unions, if not all, will remain closed until further notice, the Louisiana Credit Union League said Monday night. However, there seems to have been no disruptions in servicing members through online and mobile channels that the League was aware of, but its assessments were just getting under way. Communication has been minimal because there is little to no cell service, the League said.

For example, in addition to its 19 branches, the $589 million Pelican State Credit Union in Baton Rouge, La., had to shut down its corporate campus, call center and digital chat, though the credit union said its back-up call center would continue service for its 68,000 members. Pelican State CU, however, warned members that personal services through its texting and in-app messenger system may be temporarily unavailable due to the closures. But by Monday afternoon, the credit union said eight of its branches will reopen on Tuesday.

According to a post on its website, the $376 million Baton Rouge Telco Federal Credit Union reported its four branches were closed on Monday and said power outages may disrupt member access to electronic services, including debit card access and online banking.

The $254 million New Horizons Credit union in Mobile, Ala., did manage to open its branches on Monday morning, but then posted a notice on a social media site stating that all branches had to close at 3 p.m. because of continued heavy rain and a high risk of flooding.

The $411 million Hope Credit Union in Jackson, Miss., closed several branches in Louisiana and Mississippi on Monday, while the $4 billion Keesler Federal Credit Union in Biloxi, Miss., said all of its shops in Louisiana and Mississippi were shut down on Monday, though its Mobile, Ala., branch reopened at noon.

The $296 million RiverLand Federal Credit Union in New Orleans also reported it closed all of its branches in Louisiana and Mississippi, and the $435 million Navigator Credit Union in Moss Point, Miss., also reported closing all of its branches in Mississippi and Alabama.

The Mississippi Credit Union Association said it is in contact with member credit unions in areas affected by the storm.

"Although many credit unions are closed part or all of Monday as the storm continues its path across the state, no severe impact to Mississippi locations has been reported at this time," the league said on Monday.

The $647 million La Capitol Federal Credit Union closed four branches in hard-hit Baton Rouge and one branch each in Hammond, Houma, Metairie, Harbey and Monroe, La. Its remaining eight branches were open for business, according to its website.

While most credit unions said they expected to reopen on Tuesday, that will depend on how quickly power is restored. For example, the $1.1 billion Neighbors Federal Credit Union in Baton Rouge said it will remain closed on Tuesday, while the $459 million OnPath Federal Credit Union in Harahan, La., said it will remain closed until further notice.

"We are following advisories set by parish officials and have teams working to open as soon as power is restored and it is safe to do so,' OnPath stated on its website. "If you have evacuated, please refer to our shared branching network to access your accounts and make transactions. Online and mobile banking remain active for you to keep track of your accounts."

Despite these branch closings and many others, most credit unions indicated their online and mobile bank channels, and call centers were operational.

Steven Liberto, EVP of business solutions for the Louisiana Credit Union League in Harahan, said the league's offices were closed until further notice, but that its staff was working from home to continue serving member credit unions.

He encouraged credit unions to contact the League for assistance and if extended branch closures were expected. Liberto also noted the League's foundation is prepared to implement its quick cash program to assist credit unions.

The NCUA reported Monday afternoon that it has not yet received requests for assistance from credit unions.

"The NCUA continues to monitor the situation closely, and we are aware that branches may be closed for longer than a day due to power outages," a NCUA spokesperson said.

The NCUA's office of Credit Union Resources and Expansion can provide urgent needs grants for up to $7,500 for low-income credit unions that experience any sudden costs to restore operations because of the storm. The agency's examiners can assist credit unions that wish to apply for such grants.

CU*SOUTH, a Fairhope, Ala.-based CUSO, on Monday announced its Hurricane Ida Assistance Program for any credit union that finds itself without sufficient office space, staffing, power or IT support.

Any credit union needing a helping hand is welcome to contact CU*SOUTH, it said. The CUSO emphasized that credit unions don't need to be current clients.

"With our core clients taken care of, we reach out to the community," CU*SOUTH CEO Leo Vaulin said in a prepared statement. "After Katrina, we hosted credit unions from along the Gulf Coast that had lost their offices, some for several months. After Hurricane Irma devastated the Virgin Islands in September 2017, CU*SOUTH provided all member services for St. Thomas FCU until power and internet were restored in January 2018."