WAVELAND, Miss. (AP) – Hurricane Sally, a plodding but powerful storm with winds of 85 mph, crept toward the northern Gulf Coast early Tuesday, with forecasters warning of potentially deadly storm surges, flash floods spurred by up to 2 feet of rain and the possibility of tornadoes.
Hurricane warnings have been replaced by a tropical storm warning from the Mouth of the Pearl River westward to Grand Isle, Louisiana, including in New Orleans, the National Hurricane Center said. A tropical storm warning west of Grand Isle has been discontinued.
Hurricane warnings had stretched from Grand Isle to Navarre, Florida, but forecasters – while stressing “significant” uncertainty – kept nudging the predicted track to the east.
That eased fears in New Orleans, which once was in the storm’s crosshairs. But it prompted Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis to declare an emergency in the Panhandle’s westernmost counties, which were being pummeled by rain from Sally’s outer bands early Tuesday. The threat of heavy rain and storm surge was exacerbated by the storm’s slow movement.
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