MANDATORY EVACUATION ORDER FOR COASTAL ALABAMA FOR TOURISTS… Alabama Governor Kay Ivey has issued a proclamation ordering a mandatory evacuation, effective at 7AM on Wednesday, for coastal stretches of Alabama, including Dauphin Island, Fort Morgan, Gulf Shores, Orange Beach, and Ono Island. This order was specifically issued for coastal tourists and vacationers. Hurricane Delta continues to strengthen in the northwestern Caribbean Sea and is now a powerful, category 4 hurricane. Maximum sustained winds as of the 4PM CDT advisory are at 145 mph.
4PM ADVISORY – HURRICANE DELTA… Hurricane Delta remains a dangerous, category 4 hurricane that continues to grow better organized on this Tuesday evening. Maximum winds (at the time I am writing this at 4PM) are at 145 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… 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!
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!