HURRICANE ZETA STRENGTHENS TO NEAR MAJOR HURRICANE STATUS; LANDFALL SHORTLY… Hurricane Zeta has defied expectations, strengthening rapidly just before it makes its landfall in southeast Louisiana. Maximum sustained winds as of 3PM are at 110 mph, making Zeta a high-end, category 2 hurricane. There is a small window, over the next 1-2 hours, for more strengthening, and Zeta could become a major hurricane briefly right before landfall. These higher winds are in a very tiny area in the northern eyewall of Zeta, thus this latest development does not change the ongoing forecast for south Alabama and northwest Florida. Our big messaging point remains the same: Power outages will be possible across the region as the core of Hurricane Zeta moves by tonight. Heavy rain, high wind, tornadoes, and storm surge are all concerns.
TORNADO WATCH IN EFFECT FOR ALL LOCAL COUNTIES… All of south Alabama and northwest Florida is now involved in an ongoing Tornado Watch valid until midnight. Tornadoes will be possible in the hours ahead. Please have a way to get urgent weather warnings!
LANDFALL OF ZETA IN THE NEXT 1-2 HOURS… The center of Hurricane Zeta WILL cross the coast in southeast Louisiana in the next 1-2 hours. This is a certainty at this point and no longer has any level of uncertainty involved. Unfortunately, this increases the likelihood of power outages tonight in west Alabama as the track of Zeta is now near certain. Is there any chance of a last minute “wobble” to the east causing the storm to make landfall in Alabama or northwest Florida? No, the window of opportunity for that to happen has passed. Any sudden, extreme jolt to the east is not expected after landfall either.
TROPICAL STORM WARNING CONTINUES FOR ALL OF LOCAL AREA… The entire local area in southwest Alabama and northwest Florida remains involved in a Tropical Storm Warning as of 7AM on Wednesday. This means that tropical storm force (39+ mph) will be possible this evening and into the overnight hours as Zeta passes right over the western part of our area. All preparations should be complete at this point as conditions will rapidly deteriorate in the hours ahead.
APP ALERTS… redzoneweather.com/app is the link where you can download the free RedZone Weather app. We post brief updates throughout each day in the app, keeping you up-to-date about the latest happenings in weather across south Alabama and northwest Florida. Once you have the free app downloaded to your iOS or Android device, be sure to visit the Alerts tab (lower right corner) then tap the large, yellow Alert Settings button to customize the alerts you would like to receive straight from me.
NEXT UPDATE… Our plan of action for this evening and tonight is to be on standby for tornado warnings until the threat from Zeta passes. My next live video update will happen this evening around 7:30PM unless tornado warning coverage is needed before that. Later this evening, we will have live video coverage as needed when the core of Zeta is passing across our area. When we are not in live video coverage, be sure to check the RedZone Weather app for the very latest information.
Stay safe!