Hurricane Isaias has intensified into a Category 3 hurricane as it moves toward the Gulf Coast. Residents are scrambling to prepare for the storm, which is expected to make landfall Friday night with winds of up to 120 mph. Amna Nawaz spoke with National Hurricane Center Director Michael Brennan to find out more.
Amna Nawaz:
Hurricane Isaias has now intensified into a Category 3 hurricane as it moves toward the Gulf Coast. The storm, which has winds of up to 120 mph, is expected to make landfall later tonight.
States of emergency were declared in parts of Alabama, Florida and Georgia, warning of storm surges of up to 9 feet and up to 15 inches of rain in some coastal areas. Residents along the coast are rushing to prepare, lining up for gas and boarding up their homes ahead of the storm.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis today urged people to prepare.
Governor Ron DeSantis (R-Fla.):
Before the storm makes landfall, you’ll be facing very dangerous conditions. So you really need to finish your preparation now. You must execute your plan now. In the near future, it will no longer be safe to go out, even if the storm is still some distance away from reaching the coast. Do it now.
Amna Nawaz:
Joining us now is Michael Brennan. He is the director of the National Hurricane Center.
Michael, welcome back.
So, give us the latest on the path of Hurricane Isaias. When and where are you expected to land?
Michael Brennan, director of the National Hurricane Center:
Well, I can tell you that Isaias is still a Category 3 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson scale with maximum sustained winds of 115 miles per hour, which is a slight drop from earlier in the day, but that’s a very minor change.
You can see here the center of circulation just offshore of the Florida Panhandle, likely moving inland toward the coast and making landfall within the next few hours. That’s when the worst will begin to unfold.
But as you can see behind me, all this weather is pushing ashore now. As a result, the situation is deteriorating rapidly.
Amna Nawaz:
Yesterday, you mentioned to us that it might weaken further as it gets closer to landfall. Is this still true?
Michael Brennan:
Yeah, so it’s experiencing what we call vertical shear, whereas hurricanes don’t – they don’t typically intensify in this type of environment. So far, the storm has remained at Category 3 status. Further weakening is likely before it makes landfall.
But, for all practical purposes, it really doesn’t matter because the danger is already there and in place. Even if the storm weakens a bit in terms of wind speeds, the impact of rainfall, storm surge and wind won’t change much.
Amna Nawaz:
Based on what has happened since our last presentation, are your concerns still essentially the same, are flooding and storm surges primarily happening along the coast, or should people inland be concerned as well?
Michael Brennan:
So we’re more concerned about inland impacts. Today the pace of progress has accelerated. Now it’s going very, very fast at 17 miles an hour.
This means it can carry momentum further inland. So I think we’re going to see wind and potential power losses deep into parts of Alabama, Georgia, and even eastern Mississippi, so definitely not a coastal phenomenon. These winds will travel deep inland.
Amna Nawaz:
At this point, do you think it’s too late for people to try to evacuate? If they can’t do it, what should they do to prepare?
Michael Brennan:
It was too late to move around at this point. The sun will set soon. The situation is deteriorating rapidly. We’re already seeing tornadoes forming in some of these outer bands.
You just have to stay where you’re going, hunker down, and ride out the storm. Don’t go out and risk seeing it.
Amna Nawaz:
We care about everyone involved in the storm and wish them all the best.
This is National Hurricane Center Director Michael Brennan joining us again tonight.
Thanks.
Michael Brennan:
Thanks.