Monday, Tropical Storm Gordon lashed South Florida with heavy rains and high winds, and is expected to strengthen into a hurricane when it hits the central US Gulf Coast.
Gordon formed into a tropical storm near the Florida Keys early Monday as it moved west-northwest at 17 mph. The storm is expected to reach hurricane strength when it hits coastal Mississippi and Louisiana by late Tuesday. From there, it is forecast to move inland over the lower Mississippi Valley Wednesday.
The National Hurricane Center said at 5:00p EDT that the storm was centered 50 miles west-southwest of Fort Myers, Florida. Maximum sustained winds were clocked at 50 mph.
A hurricane warning was put into effect for the area stretching from the mouth of the Pearl River in Mississippi to the Alabama-Florida border. As much as 8 ins of rain could fall in some parts of the Gulf states through late Thursday.
The Miami-based center said the storm is also expected to bring “life-threatening” storm surge to portions of the central Gulf Coast. A storm surge warning has been issued for the area stretching from Shell Beach, Louisiana, to Dauphin Island, Alabama. The warning means there is danger of life-threatening inundation. The region could see rising waters of 3 to 5 ft.
At a press conference Monday afternoon, New Orleans’ Mayor said the city has “the pumps and the power” needed to protect residents. But authorities issued a voluntary evacuation order for areas outside the city’s levee protection system, including the Venetian Isles, Lake Saint Catherine and Irish Bayou areas.
The Mayor urged residents within the levee protection area to stock up on supplies and shelter in place.
New Orleans director of emergency preparedness warned city residents the storm has the potential to turn into a “low-level hurricane” with winds of up to 70 mph.
The storm left many businesses on Florida’s Gulf Coast feeling shortchanged by the holiday weekend. The area has already been heavily impacted by this summer’s so-called “Red Tide”a massive algae blooms that have caused waves of dead marine life to wash up along the coast.