Wind, rain, surge & more: What would Category 1-strength winds mean for Mississippi Coast?

A tropical system expected to hit Louisiana this week could bring persistent winds to South Mississippi, an area that has been spared hurricane force winds in recent years.

Potential Tropical Cyclone Six, a disturbance in the Gulf of Mexico with maximum sustained winds of nearly 50 mph, was upgraded Monday morning to Tropical Storm Francine and is expected to move in our direction. Additionally, National Hurricane Center experts expect “more significant intensification on Tuesday and Wednesday.”

The current forecast track shows a possible Wednesday evening landfall on the Louisiana coast. Currently, tropical-storm-force winds extend outward up to 185 miles from the center of the storm. Should the current forecast track hold, all of the Mississippi Coast would be expected to feel the effects of the storm.

Category 1 effects

HOME: A Category 1 storm has maximum sustained winds of between 74 and 95 mph. While it is the lowest cagetory, a Cat 1 storm is, nonetheless, a dangerous one, capable of causing damage to roofs, windows, gutters and siding.

TREES: A Cat 1 storm is capable of snapping branches and even toppling trees. Trees become more susceptible to uprooting when extended, heavy rains saturate the ground around them.

POWER: A Cat 1 storm is capable if damaging power lines and power poles and causing outages in affected areas.

SURGE: Buildings on the Coast, particularly ones on or near bodies of water, are at risk of flooding due to storm surge. The severity of any surge depends on a host of factors, including the time the storm makes its approach and landfall, tides, air pressure, total rainfall and winds. Storm surges can cause more damage than the storm itself.

This story was originally published September 9, 2024 at 9:24 AM.