The 5:00 p.m. advisory from the National Hurricane Center puts the storm about 40 miles (65 kilometers) west-southwest of Puerto Lempira, Honduras, and about 425 miles (680 kilometers) south-southeast of Cozumel, Mexico.
The storm has picked up speed and is moving in a north-northwest direction at 10 mph (17 kph). The minimum central pressure has dropped to 1000 MB – 29.53 inches. The current motion is expected to stay the same for the next couple of days. However, the center of the storm is then expected to move near or over the northeastern part of the Yucatan Peninsula and the adjacent islands late Friday or Friday night, and then move into the Gulf of Mexico on Saturday.
“As of now, those areas are in the cone,” said NBC meteorologist Sherri Pugh. “Areas from New Orleans across to the Florida Panhandle should be prepared for tropical conditions as the forecast will come into focus over approximately the next 36 to 48 hours.”
Evacuations already ordered in parts of the Gulf Coast
Grand Isle, a Louisiana town that sits on a narrow barrier island in the Gulf of Mexico has already declared a voluntary evacuation, The New Orleans Advocate reported. The island town school and the library will be closed on Friday and Saturday in advance of what should be a Category 1 Hurricane.
In Florida, Governor Rick Scott has declared a state of emergency for 29 counties in the northern part of the state. “We have to take it seriously and get prepared now,” Scott said. While the Hurricane is not expected to make a direct hit on the Texas coastline, they may feel some of the effects of the storm.
We will know more about the track by tomorrow or Saturday, although the European models show the coming hurricane making landfall in New Orleans. And looking at the video of the tropical storm’s impact in Costa Rica, be assured there will be a heck of a lot of water coming down.