TORONTO – Tropical Storm Karen continued to churn in the Gulf of Mexico on Friday and residents are preparing for the worst.
Grand Isle Mayor David Camardelle ordered the evacuation of his barrier island community, where the only way out is a single flood-prone highway.
New Orleans sheriff Marlin Gusman announced that he has moved more than 400 inmates from temporary tent facilities to safer state prisons. Mayor Mitch Landrieu said a city emergency operations centre would begin around-the-clock operations Friday evening.
In Braithwaite and Plaquemines, low-lying towns near Louisiana’s southeastern tip, residents had been ordered to evacuate. The area was affected by last year’s Hurricane Isaac which was only a Category 1, but the system stalled over the area producing heavy rainfall.
The National Hurricane Center is forecasting Karen to near the central Gulf coast on Saturday. A little strengthening is possible Saturday night and Sunday.
Whether or not it reaches hurricane strength, the storm is already producing storm surges along the shore. Its tropical storm-force winds extend outward up to 220 km and people along the coast are already feeling its effects. Rainfall between 76 and 152 mm is forecast over parts of the central and eastern Gulf coast from Friday through to Sunday night.
Lifeguard stands were moved off the beach to higher ground on beaches in Florida and Alabama. States of emergency were in effect in Louisiana, Mississippi and parts of Florida.
Traffic at the mouth of the Mississippi River was stopped Friday morning in advance of the storm.
The White House said that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) was recalling some workers furloughed due to the government shutdown.
With files from The Associated Press
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