08 October, 2017
As of Friday night, the impacts appear to be mostly rainfall as the Big Bend and South Georgia experience some of the eastern bands of Nate. Satellite images show deeper convection exploiting just between Cuba and the Yucatán Peninsula. Rain began falling on the region Saturday and forecasters called for 3 to 6 inches with as much as 10 inches in isolated places.
It had maximum sustained winds of 45 miles per hour (75 kph) by Friday morning and was likely to strengthen over the northwestern Caribbean Sea on Friday before a possible strike on the Cancun region at the tip of Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula at near-hurricane strength.
Even if Nate remains a tropical storm, it can still dump feet of rain in an area, which can quickly overwhelm drainage systems, causing flash flooding and mudslides. A hurricane warning is in effect from Grand Isle, Louisiana, to the Alabama-Florida border as well as for the New Orleans metro area and nearby Lake Pontchartrain. This puts into perspective the speed at which this storm is traveling.
Nate is expected to make landfall on Saturday night USA time, and many parts of the southeastern state have been declared emergency zones.
Hurricane Nate came ashore at the mouth of the Mississippi River on Saturday and pelted the central Gulf Coast with wind and rain as the fast-moving storm steamed toward the Mississippi coast.
The storm brushed by Mexico's Yucatan peninsula, home to beach resorts such as Cancun and Playa del Carmen, as it headed north, the U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami said.
Hurricane season is not over. Most of the convection and winds will be focused in the right half of the storm. Potentially damaging winds can be expected.
"The threat of direct impacts from wind, storm surge, and heavy rainfall is increasing", the Hurricane Center reported Thursday. Still tropical systems drop large amounts of rains.
In Florida, the Pensacola International Airport planned to cease operations Saturday night and remain closed throughout Sunday, airport officials said. Afternoon storms are likely. Three to 6 inches will be possible, with some areas getting up to 8 inches (especially along and west of I-65).
Another powerful storm, Hurricane Maria, ripped through the Caribbean in late September, devastating several islands, including Dominica and Puerto Rico. "We are ready for whatever Nate brings our way".