Harrison County residents urged to remain wary of Sally: ‘This thing could go anywhere’
Evacuation orders have been issued, the casinos closed and storm shelters opened in Harrison County, as Hurricane Sally continued to churn offshore Tuesday.
Forecasters now expect the center of the storm to come ashore east of Biloxi, but warn that it’s still too early to say for sure. With some outer bands of rain just reaching the city Tuesday morning, the main task for the day will be urging people to remain vigilant, said Jeff Clark, spokesman for the county emergency operations center.
“You just have to keep people on their toes, because this thing could go anywhere,” Clark said.
And Sally is not in any hurry. As of 4 p.m., the center of the storm was about 85 miles south of Mobile, moving north at just 2 mph.
The National Weather Service has issued storm surge and hurricane warnings for Harrison and Jackson counties. Forecasters say Sally will make landfall sometime Wednesday morning before moving northward through Alabama into Georgia.
The slow-moving storm is expected to cause 2 to 4 feet of storm surge in Harrison County as well as flooding rains all along the Mississippi coast. On Monday, the county issued a mandatory evacuation order for 26 miles of beach south of the sea wall as well as low-lying areas that are prone to flooding.
Clark said he didn’t know how many people had heeded the evacuation order. “You wouldn’t know that until it’s too late, until you start getting the calls” from people trapped in their homes or neighborhoods, he said.
Some street flooding along the coast was already evident Tuesday as tides are running about 2.5 feet above normal, Clark said. In Pass Christian, more than two dozen streets in low-lying areas were already closed Tuesday morning.
In Biloxi, parts of U.S. 90 began to flood late Tuesday morning, as did the lighthouse parking lot and the Popp’s Ferry Causeway. Mayor Andrew “FoFo” Gilich said more road closures were expected and urged people to limit travel.
“There’s no doubt that this storm is still a threat,” Gilich said in a written statement. “Projections have taken it from the west to east of us now. People need to be vigilant, and we need to be prepared for water to back up in our bays, rivers, and low-lying areas. Swollen rivers will be cresting as late as Thursday.”
Creeks and rivers in the county are expected to exceed their banks. Forecasters expect the Biloxi River to crest late Wednesday at 19 feet, 7 feet above flood stage, while the Wolf and Tchoutacabouffa rivers aren’t expected to peak until Thursday morning, both well above flood stage.
Nick Geiser, Biloxi’s emergency manager, said the city has water rescue teams on duty in case they’re needed. Geiser said he was encouraged to hear that the storm surge may not be as bad an initially feared, but says flooding remains a concern, particularly if the storm dumps lots of rain.
“Depending on what we catch north of us, those rivers always like to flood a day or two after a storm moves through,” he said in an interview. “We always are concerned with the flooding.”
Coast Transit Authority says it won’t operate any buses Wednesday but plans to resume service on Thursday if roads are in good shape.
The county opened three storm shelters, at 15058 County Farm Road in Gulfport; 9509 Lobouy Road in Pass Christian, and 23771 Saucier Lizana Road in Saucier. Three additional shelters are ready to be opened if needed, Clark said.
To avoid crowding that could spread the coronavirus, the shelters will operate at half capacity, he said.
The state has opened a shelter for people with special medical needs at 1640 Coy Ave. in Wiggins, 34 miles north of Gulfport. The shelter should be considered a “last resort for those people whose medical needs cannot be accommodated in a general population shelter,” according to the Harrison County website.
Many businesses closed in advance of the storm. The state gaming commission ordered casinos to close by 4 p.m. Monday. Harrison County government offices and courthouses are closed Tuesday.
Residents are urged to call 911 if they need rescue, although emergency personnel maybe unable to respond at the height of the storm. Numbers for non-emergencies are listed below:
Harrison County Sheriff: 228-865-7060
Biloxi Police Department: 228-392-0641
Gulfport Police Department: 228-868-5900
Long Beach Police Department: 228-863-7292
Pass Christian Police Department: 228-452-3301
D’Iberville Police Department: 228-296-4254
This story was originally published September 15, 2020 at 12:12 PM.