Hurricane Delta takes aim on the Gulf Coast, evacuations ordered in Louisiana
Hurricane Delta is taking aim on Louisiana where it's expected to make landfall Friday afternoon near Cameron -- the same area hit hard by Hurricane Laura in August.
Delta may be a powerful Category 3 hurricane when it makes landfall.
Lake Charles, Louisiana, Mayor Nic Hunter said Thursday, "This is not a bad dream, it's not a test run. These are the cards that we have been dealt."
Lake Charles is in Calcasieu Parish, where mandatory evacuations have been ordered.
"We realize that not everyone has the financial wherewithal to just simply put money into a gas tank and go rent a hotel right now. And I know there's a lot of people out there that are feeling very fatigued. But there are options," Hunter said. "And the window of opportunity really is only today to evacuate."
Hurricane warnings are in effect from High Island, Texas, to Morgan City, Louisiana. Tropical storm warnings are in effect from Galveston, Texas, to New Orleans.
The president has approved federal emergency declarations in Louisiana and Mississippi.
As Delta grows in size, storm surge proves to be a major threat, especially east of the eye across the Louisiana coastline from Cameron to New Orleans.
Storm surge may be as high as 11 feet in Morgan City, Louisiana, and as high as 7 feet in Cameron.
Storm surge could be up to 5 feet in New Orleans.
Once fast-moving Delta weakens to a tropical storm and moves inland, heavy rain will pound central and northern Louisiana, southern Arkansas and western Mississippi.
Rainfall totals may be between 5 and 15 inches in some areas from Lake Charles to Monroe, Louisiana.
Heavy rain could also impact the Tennessee River Valley on Saturday. As Delta remnants move farther inland through the weekend, the Ohio Valley to mid-Atlantic could see up to two inches of rain.
When Hurricane Delta makes landfall, it will break the record for most storms to make landfall in one season in the continental U.S.
The other nine named storms that made landfall this season were: Tropical Storm Bertha (South Carolina); Tropical Storm Cristobal (Louisiana); Tropical Storm Fay (New Jersey); Hurricane Hanna (Texas); Hurricane Isaias (North Carolina); Hurricane Laura (Louisiana); Tropical Storm Marco (Louisiana), Hurricane Sally (Alabama); and Tropical Storm Beta (Texas).
