Gov. Bobby Jindal is completing a press conference in Louisiana right now discussing the latest preparations in his state.
Some notes…
…people in FEMA trailers urged to evacuate now
…a hurricane watch is expected along the coast by Saturday afternoon
…a hurricane warning is expected by Sunday morning
…tropical storm force winds (39 mph or greater) are expected in coastal sections between 4-8 a.m. Monday
…tropical storm force winds are expected in New Orleans between 8 a.m. and 11 a.m. Monday
…a very large storm surge is expected in areas along and south of US-90
…19 parishes have declared emergencies
…voluntary evacuations are underway now in some parishes
…mandatory evacuations will begin Saturday afternoon
…AMTRAK trains are taking evacuees to Memphis
…hundreds of buses have been contracted to remove people in harm’s way
…both Louisiana contraflow plans will be implemented Sunday morning…this could occur as early as Saturday evening if conditions change
…the LSU game has been moved to 10 a.m. Saturday
…National Guard has been activated…1,500 guardsmen and women are in New Orleans now ready to help with evacuation and shelters
…shelters are opening
Late model info…
…afternoon GFS shows hurricane making landfall west of Lafayette Monday night
…the morning GFDL was much faster putting the hurricane near the coast near Grand Isle ealry Monday morning…
…the morning HWRF had the storm stalling off the coast west of Lafayette
More track reasonging later this evening…
Track uncertainty…
…This hurricane still is three days out. The cone of uncertainty is huge. Everyone from Mobile to Corpus Christi is in danger.
