Hurricane Delta Path: As it approached the US Gulf Coast early Thursday, Hurricane Delta grew to a Category 2 storm with maximum sustained winds of 100 mph.
Forecasters expect the storm to make landfall along the Louisiana coast on Friday.
The National Hurricane Center issued a storm surge. The hurricane watches for parts of the Gulf Coast’s northwestern and northern reaches on Wednesday, ahead of Delta, which slammed into Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula, uprooting trees and electrical lines.
The Hurricane Center cautioned that “Delta is likely to grow in size as it approaches the northern Gulf Coast, where there is an increasing possibility of life-threatening storm surge and hazardous hurricane-force winds beginning Friday, particularly for areas of the Louisiana coast.”
Why is there an active hurricane delta path season this year?
In addition, the Delta could bring 4 to 8 inches of rain to the central Gulf Coast through areas of the Lower Mississippi Valley, with isolated maximum amounts of 12 inches. According to the hurricane center, heavy rains could cause flash, urban, and small stream flooding, as well as moderate river flooding.
According to the center, heavy rain is predicted in the Ohio Valley and mid-Atlantic region this weekend as Delta pushes inland.
Delta was heading west-northwest at 17 mph as of 2 a.m. EDT. Cameron, Louisiana, was roughly 485 miles away.
According to Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards, Delta is predicted to make landfall Friday night or Saturday morning, and the entire state could be in the storm’s path. He said state and municipal officials were fortifying levees, sandbagging, and taking other protective steps in coastal areas.
In August, Hurricane Laura, which destroyed the southwestern region when it rushed ashore as a Category 4 storm, is still havoc because their houses are too severely damaged to return. More than 6,600 Laura evacuees stay in hotels around the state, primarily in New Orleans.
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According to Edwards, President Donald Trump approved Edwards’ request for a pre-landfall disaster declaration on Wednesday night.
“As we prepare to endure yet another severe hurricane, all who live in South Louisiana should be preparing for Hurricane #Delta and plan to be in place by Thursday evening,” Edwards stated on Twitter.
Delta would be the tenth named storm to impact the United States in a single season, a new high. According to AccuWeather, this year has tied 1916 for the number of tropical cyclones that have made landfall in the United States.
According to the Weather Channel, Hurricanes Hanna, Isaias, Laura, and Sally have all made landfall so far in 2020. Delta would be the year’s fifth hurricane to make landfall.
Delta made landfall in Mexico as a Category 2 storm on Wednesday morning, near Puerto Morelos on the Yucatan Peninsula’s northeastern coast. According to the National Hurricane Center, Delta made landfall around 6:30 a.m. EDT, with maximum winds of 110 mph.
“Fortunately, the most hazardous section of the hurricane has gone,” stated Carlos Joaquin González, governor of Quintana Roo.
There were no initial reports of deaths or injuries, according to civil defense director Luis Alberto Ortega Vázquez. Still, Delta had downed around 95 trees and knocked off electricity to portions of Cancun and Cozumel.
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