140MPH, CAT. 4 HURRICANE DELTA STRENGTHENING; LOCAL IMPACTS ARE EXPECTED… Hurricane Delta is currently forecast to make landfall in Louisiana late Friday or more likely, early Saturday as a major hurricane. This means that our local area in south Alabama and northwest Florida WILL be on the eastern side of the storm as it advances northeast. It cannot be stressed enough that there is uncertainty as to where specifically the center of the eye of Delta will move onshore. Right now, the cone of uncertainty extends from Beaumont, Texas eastward to Pensacola, Florida. This includes a big chunk of our local area. Again, that’s where the CENTER of the storm may move. Impacts will extend well beyond that center point. Keeping that in mind, have a look at the attached graphic which highlights specific local impacts you can expect here in south Alabama and northwest Florida. Important: THIS GRAPHIC WILL CHANGE in the days ahead based on the projected path of Hurricane Delta. Forecast changes are still possible and will be until we get the center of the storm closer to the coast later this week.
1PM ADVISORY – HURRICANE DELTA… Hurricane Delta remains a dangerous, category 4 hurricane that continues to grow better organized on this Tuesday afternoon. Maximum winds (at the time I am writing this at 1PM) are at 140 mph. Minimum central pressure is holding steady for now and is now at 956 millibars. Further strengthening is likely and Delta could be a devastating hurricane for the northeast corner of the Yucatan Peninsula as it moves by in the next 24-36 hours. Delta continues to move west-northwest at 16 mph. Folks in and just north of Cozumel, Mexico should hunker down and prepare for a HIGH-END hurricane impact!
POTENTIAL LOCAL IMPACTS CAN AND WILL CHANGE – UNCERTAINTY… It cannot be stressed enough that IF the forecast path for Hurricane Delta shifts more to the east, that means that our local area in south Alabama and northwest Florida will have MORE in the way of local impacts. On the flip side, if Delta moves farther WEST than currently forecast, we would have LESS in the way of impacts. As of this moment, I would suggest our region will have a “glancing blow” and not a “total knockout” from Delta. There will be impacts (perhaps some being significant), but not the major impacts that folks in Louisiana and Mississippi will have to contend with this weekend. Big takeaway here: DO NOT let your guard down!
GREATEST IMPACTS LOCALLY EXPECTED IN WEST ALABAMA… For our local area, the greatest impacts from Hurricane Delta are expected to happen in Mobile, Washington, Clarke, and Baldwin counties. Tropical storm force winds will be possible, in addition to a threat of heavy rain that could lead to flash flooding, tornadoes, storm surge at Mobile Bay, the Mississippi Sound, and the Alabama beaches, and potentially coastal flooding.
RISKS A BIT MORE UNCLEAR FOR THE REST OF US… For the reminder of us in locales in Monroe, Conecuh, Butler, Covington, Escambia (AL), Santa Rosa, Escambia (FL), Okaloosa, and Walton counties, the specific impacts from Hurricane Delta are a bit more unclear. Gusty winds are likely at times, heavy rain is expected at times, but the risk of tornadoes, flash flooding, and even storm surge at the northwest Florida beaches is a bit less certain. Remain on guard in these areas, but know that the greater risk is currently to your west.
APP… Many updates will be posted throughout the day and over the next few days in the RedZone Weather app. redzoneweather.com/app is the link for the free download. Be sure to visit the Alerts tab (bottom right corner) and tap the large, yellow “Alert Settings” button to customize the alerts you’d like to receive from me. If you like a lot of info, be sure to toggle ON Low-Level Alerts.
NEXT UPDATE… My next detailed update on Hurricane Delta will happen tonight in our live video that will start at some point between 7:30PM and 9:30PM. We will dive deep into the data and talk more in detail about potential local impacts from Delta. Until then, plenty more updates will be posted in the RedZone Weather app. Have a good Tuesday evening!