Hurricane Isaias strengthened into a Category 3 storm Friday, sending 120 mph winds toward the Gulf Coast as residents boarded windows, filled fuel containers and prepared to evacuate. The National Hurricane Center warned that life-threatening storm surges and high winds could strike parts of the Florida Panhandle, southern Alabama and southern Mississippi.
Residents Face the Storm
Isaias sat about 200 miles south-southeast of the mouth of the Mississippi River and moved north at about 15 mph, the center said. Forecasters expected it to make landfall late Friday between Mobile Bay on the Alabama coast and Choctawhatchee Bay in the Florida Panhandle.
Flash flooding and tornadoes could accompany the wind and storm surge. Water could rise 5 to 7 feet, with the deepest surge along immediate coastal areas. Large, dangerous waves were also expected.
Rain began falling along the coast Friday morning. Tropical storm conditions were expected early in the afternoon, and the center warned that conditions would deteriorate quickly. “Preparations should be rushed to completion as the weather will go downhill quickly today,” the hurricane center said in an early morning forecast.
After Isaias reached shore, forecasters expected it to weaken quickly and become a tropical storm by Saturday afternoon as it moved north and inland along the Alabama-Mississippi line. The center said Isaias wasn't expected to make landfall at peak intensity, but likely would remain a significant hurricane when it reached the coast.
Residents spent Thursday boarding windows and stacking sandbags. Long lines formed at gas stations in Mobile, Alabama, where people filled containers, generators and cars with fuel. The city distributed sandbags as preparations continued.
Larry Smith boarded up his home on Dauphin Island ahead of the expected landfall. Daniel and Brand Harp, of Lebanon, Tennessee, packed their belongings to leave Pensacola Beach Friday morning. In Perdido Key, Florida, Mike Howard and Joshua Brown boarded up Perdido Key Sports Bar.
Evacuations and Emergency Measures
Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey ordered non-residents to leave Gulf Shores, Orange Beach and Dauphin Island immediately. Social media videos showed traffic at a standstill on a highway out of Gulf Shores, where double-red beach flags closed access to the water. Several counties ordered mandatory evacuations for some coastal areas.
The governors of Florida and Alabama declared states of emergency for dozens of counties. Florida's Ron DeSantis said about 5,000 National Guard troops were expected to mobilize by Friday. Thousands of National Guard soldiers had already deployed, and an 88-member team prepared to leave Homestead, Florida, for Tallahassee to assist with emergency operations and storm relief.
On Dauphin Island, a 15-mile barrier island off Alabama's coast, officials encouraged voluntary evacuations, particularly in the popular western section, which is vulnerable to storm surge. Mayor Jeff Collier said he didn't anticipate substantial damage, but warned that a small change in the storm's path or a last-minute increase in strength could alter the danger. “We just have to be prepared for the worst,” he said.
A hurricane warning covered the coast from Ocean Springs, Mississippi, to the western Florida Panhandle. Tropical storm warnings extended from southeastern Louisiana to the Aucilla River along Florida's Big Bend.
A Season of Strong Storms
Isaias became the Atlantic season's first hurricane and the latest first Atlantic hurricane to form since 1914. The season had been dominated by a supersized El Niño's “decapitating winds,” which smothered storms before they could strengthen. In the Pacific, Hurricane Simon formed as a tropical storm off Mexico on Wednesday, became a hurricane late Thursday and was forecast to strengthen into a Category 4 storm.