Live updates: MS Coast braces for surge, high winds, heavy rain from Hurricane Laura
Editor’s note: Find the latest Wednesday updates here.
Hurricane Laura is moving West/Northwest across the Gulf of Mexico at 17 mph, according to the 4 p.m. update from the National Hurricane Center in Miami.
Laura, which was located near latitude 24.7 North and longitude 89.3 West, has maximum sustained winds of 80 mph and a minimum pressure of 990 mb.
A turn to the northwest is expected by Wednesday.
It is still expected to strengthen into a major hurricane before it makes landfall Wednesday night or Thursday morning near the Texas-Louisiana border.
A storm surge warning remains in effect from San Luis Pass, Texas, to the mouth of the Mississippi River.
The hurricane warning stretches from San Luis Pass to Intracoastal City, Louisiana.
A storm surge watch is still in effect from Freeport, Texas, to San Luis Pass and from the mouth of the Mississippi River to Ocean Springs.
Laura expected to become a Category 3-4 hurricane
Hurricane Laura is shaping up to be a Category 3-4 hurricane as it gains intensity over the Gulf of Mexico, with forecast models aligning around a landfall west of the Louisiana-Texas border.
“Do not be surprised if Laura becomes a Category 4 hurricane prior to landfall,” meteorologist Rocco Calaci, who specializes in Gulf Coast weather, wrote in his morning newsletter. “This is going to be an extremely dangerous situation for millions of people in the Southeast Texas and Southwest Louisiana areas.”
Laura has a wind field that extends 175 miles from its center, which on its current path is expected to push 3 feet to 5 feet of storm surge ashore from Hancock County to Ocean Springs, causing flooding in low-lying areas.
South Mississippi also should be prepared for gusty winds, flash-flooding from heavy rainfall and possible tornadoes beginning Wednesday. The National Hurricane Center predicts the potential for flash-flooding in most of Mississippi, with the exception of its west-central tip, is marginal.
The probability for tropical-storm force winds of at least 39 mph, with higher gusts, stands at 20% to 30% in western Hancock County and 10 % to 20% for the rest of the Mississippi coast. Winds are expected to pick up Wednesday morning.
Laura is expected ashore around late Wednesday night or early Thursday morning.
Hurricane Hunters declare Laura a hurricane
Hancock County Emergency Manager Brian Adam said streets have already flooded in low-lying areas and more flooding is expected. Flooding is from tidal surge, but Laura also is forecast to dump 1-4 inches of rain with the higher amounts in southwestern and north Mississippi.
In addition to storm surge and rainfall, Harrison County Emergency Manager Rupert Lacy said South Mississippi can possibly expect tornadoes.
“The track is not concrete,” Lacy said. “I’m concerned we’re still in the picture . . . Everybody in the northern Gulf is watching it and watching it very actively.”
The Hurricane Hunters based at Keesler Air Force Base in Biloxi reported that Laura had become a hurricane Tuesday morning, the National Hurricane Center tweeted at 7:15 a.m. Tuesday.
7: 30 a.m. Tuesday
Waterspouts capable of producing strong winds and hazardous seas prompted special marine warnings Tuesday morning on the Mississippi Sound as Tropical Depression Marco and Hurricane Laura churn in the Gulf.
Showers that could produce waterspouts were located about 12 nautical miles southwest of Pass Christian and over Fort Morgan in Alabama. Both storms were moving toward land.
The special marine warning from the National Weather Service expires at 8 a.m.
The Coast also is under a storm-surge watch as Hurricane Laura enters warm Gulf waters and Marco dissipates off Louisiana’s shore.
Laura has shifted west and strengthened from a tropical storm, threatening landfall as a Category 3 hurricane Wednesday night or early Thursday over upper Texas or Southwest Louisiana.
Laura’s significant wind field, which extended 175 miles from the center Tuesday morning, threatens the coastline from Texas to Mississippi.
Laura’s maximum sustained winds of 65 mph are expected to pick up significantly over warm Gulf waters. The storm’s wind field extends outward for 175 miles.
The Mississippi Coast is under a storm-surge watch from Hancock County to Ocean Springs. If peak surge and high tide coincide, water could be 3 feet to 5 feet above ground.
Tropical Storm and hurricane watches apply in Texas and Louisiana, stopping short of Mississippi’s coastline.
However, the coast, and particularly areas of Hancock County, could experience strong winds and 3-6 inches of rain as Laura moves toward shore.
The National Hurricane Center issued its last public advisory on Marco, now a post-tropical storm, at 4 a.m., Tuesday. The storm is now a remnant low off the Coast of Louisiana. The system is expected to continue moving west off the Louisiana coast until it dissipates by early Wednesday or sooner.
Marco’s maximum sustained winds were 30 mph.
This story was originally published August 25, 2020 at 7:55 AM.
