By Ned Randolph NEW ORLEANS (Reuters) -Hurricane Francine came ashore in southern Louisiana on Wednesday, pounding New Orleans with heavy rains and gusty winds while threatening the wider Gulf Coast with a potentially deadly storm surge that led to evacuation orders for thousands of people.

Tropical storm force winds, winds with speeds of 39 mph and above, are expected to start arriving along Louisiana's coast early Wednesday morning, likely between 7 a.m. and noon, ahead of Francine's landfall later in the day, said Lauren Nash, a forecaster with the National Weather Service in Slidell.

For a city that routinely sees flooding, New Orleans residents and business owners were taken aback by the intense rains of Hurricane Francine, which still was at Category 1 strength when it passed over the city Wednesday night.