H urricane Francine, which formed near the Gulf of Mexico on Monday and is headed northwards, strengthened into a Category 1 hurricane on Tuesday night. It is set to make landfall on Wednesday in Louisiana, according to the U.S. National Hurricane Center.
As of 8 a.m. EST on Wednesday , Francine is about 260 miles east-northeast of the mouth of the Rio Grande and about 195 miles southwest of Morgan, Louisiana. The hurricane is moving northwest at 12 m.p.h and currently has top sustained winds of 90 m.p.h.
A storm surge warning is in effect from Cameron, Louisiana, to the Mississippi-Alabama border, as well as for Vermilion Bay, Lake Maurepas, and Lake Pontchartrain. The warning means there is a risk of life-threatening flooding as the storm makes landfall in Louisiana, expected between mid-afternoon and late at night on Wednesday. A hurricane warning is now in effect on the Louisiana coast from the Vermilion/Cameron Line to Grand Isle.
Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry signed a state of emergency order on Monday in anticipation of the potential hurricane, and the order is expected to remain in place until Wednesday, Sept. 18.
Landry has urged citizens to prepare in advance for Francine. “I feel very confident that all of the agencies have activated their emergency response plans,” he said during a press conference on Tuesday afternoon. “We will keep our citizens informed.”
Residents of the state capital, Baton Rouge, were seen forming long lines at gas stations and grocery stores ahead of Francine’s expected landfall. Others have begun filling sandbags at city-operated locations to protect their homes from flooding, the Associated Press reported . Homeless shelters in Baton Rouge have also activated a response plan , one of which posted on Facebook that they are “doing everything we can to get as many men, women, children, and families off the street,” for when Francine makes landfall.
Francine is expected to bring heavy rain of 7-9 inches and localized flooding once it reaches the shore. Flash floods are “probable” along the mid-south coast of Texas between Wednesday night and Saturday morning, according to the National Hurricane Center .
Texas Governor Greg Abbott also held a press conference in Beaumont on Tuesday to discuss preparedness for the state ahead of the storm, saying that they are “deploying all the resources needed.”
“It’s a potential for significantly dangerous, life-threatening inundation,” said Michael Brennan, director of the National Hurricane Center.
So far, the Cameron Parish Office of Homeland Security & Emergency Preparedness has ordered a mandatory evacuation for seven remote coastal communities in Louisiana.
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