Hurricane Sally Could Unleash “Historic Flooding” Across Gulf Coast States 

Hurricane Sally continues to slowly churn as it nears the Gulf Coast Tuesday, moving west-northwest at two mph, with maximum sustained winds are 85 mph, down from 100 mph on Monday evening. 

Sally’s center is positioned near the coast of southeastern Louisiana on Tuesday, about 75 miles east-southeast of the mouth of the Mississippi River.

Despite the overnight downgrade in wind intensity, the storm will unleash significant and life-threatening storm surges and flash flooding because of its slow movement. NHC warned Sally could unleash “historic flooding” across parts of Mississippi, Alabama, and portions of the Florida panhandle.

NHC expects the storm to hook right of New Orleans and make landfall late Tuesday or early Wednesday near the Mississippi-Alabama state line. However, the exact track remains uncertain. 

President Trump tweeted late Monday night that his “team” is “closely monitoring extremely dangerous Hurricane Sally.” Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana have had emergency declarations approved by the White House ahead of Sally’s arrival. 

My team and I are closely monitoring extremely dangerous Hurricane Sally. We are fully engaged with State & Local Leaders to assist the great people of Alabama, Louisiana, and Mississippi. Be ready and listen to State and Local Leaders! @GovernorKayIvey @LouisianaGov @TateReeves

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 15, 2020

NOAA’s team of Hurricane Hunters flew near the eye of the storm to investigate the strengthening hurricane on Monday. They captured this image: 

Tropical storm and hurricane warnings extend from New Orleans to Panama City Beach, Florida. 

Storm surge warnings have been posted for New Orleans to Alabama-Florida Line.

Here are storm surge peak projections for Gulf Coast states.

Torrential rains are expected for Louisiana, Alabama, and Florida beach towns. 

Hurricane-forced winds are expected by Tuesday morning. 

Readers may recall there’s a traffic jam of systems swirling in the Atlantic this week. 

As we’ve noted, La Nina is behind the super active hurricane season.