Tropical Storm Francine reaches hurricane strength as it approaches the Gulf Coast. Louisiana residents are already closing the floodgates

CNN
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Tropical Storm Francine is expected to strengthen into a hurricane on Tuesday as it heads toward Louisiana. Some communities have been evacuated and closed their floodgates as the storm is likely to make landfall there on Wednesday.

Francine was located about 420 miles from Morgan City, Louisiana, on Tuesday morning and was packing maximum sustained winds of 65 mph, just 9 mph short of being classified as a hurricane, according to the National Hurricane Center.

Follow the storm: The latest spaghetti models and other storm maps can be found here.

The powerful tropical storm dumped several inches of torrential rain and gusty winds on parts of southernmost Texas on Tuesday morning, but dissipated on Tuesday and moved northeast through the Gulf of Mexico, where it will regain intensity after overnight adverse weather conditions.

Meteorologists expect the storm to intensify significantly in the record-warm Gulf of Mexico and develop into a hurricane as early as Tuesday evening, continuing to strengthen through Wednesday morning.

The storm's forecast path has also shifted eastward, which could favor intensification as it will have more time over water and could also affect a larger portion of the New Orleans area. Due to the eastward shift, tropical storm and storm surge warnings have been issued for the Mississippi and Alabama coasts.

The storm may encounter more hostile conditions that could limit its strength before landfall, but its overall impact will remain the same: heavy rain, fierce winds, and a potentially life-threatening storm surge threaten to flood roads, cause significant damage to homes, and cause widespread power outages.

The most severe impacts are expected to be felt in southern Louisiana around the time of landfall, but the storm will be felt across a larger area of ​​the Gulf Coast long before then.

Parts of the upper Texas and Louisiana coast will continue to see rain and isolated thunderstorms until Francine's rainbands arrive overnight into Wednesday morning. Tropical storm force winds could arrive as early as Wednesday morning.

The strength of a storm depends on the wind speed, but the greatest danger of death comes from water. Francine's case is no different.

Francine will push several feet of water up the Gulf of Mexico onto normally dry areas of the western Gulf Coast, which is known as storm surge. Storm surge warnings and watches extend along the coast from far northeast Texas to the Mississippi-Alabama border. The storm surge threat here is the reason for several evacuation orders along the Louisiana coast and the Gulf.

Water levels will rise most as Francine approaches a possible landfall on Louisiana's central coast, where tidal surge could be up to 10 feet above normal.

Flooding from heavy rain also poses a significant threat. Flood warnings have been issued for parts of the Gulf Coast – some areas expected to be inundated by Francine were drenched by a non-tropical system last week, so less rain is enough to trigger flash flooding.

The storm's outer rain bands could reach the Gulf Coast as early as Tuesday evening, but the heaviest rainfall is unlikely until Wednesday morning.

Rainfall totaling 10 to 20 centimeters is expected from the coast of northeastern Mexico to southern Mississippi. Some areas in southeastern Louisiana could see as much as 30 centimeters.

The storm is expected to weaken quickly on its way to the coast on Wednesday, but rain is expected for the rest of the week, drenching parts of the lower and middle Mississippi Valley.

The governor of Louisiana will declare a statewide state of emergency ahead of Francine's arrival. Governor Jeff Landry said Monday that he has already asked the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to prepare assistance.

On Tuesday, evacuation orders were expanded along the state's coast.

According to the municipal administration, mandatory and voluntary evacuations were to take effect in parts of Lafourche Parish on Tuesday afternoon. Mandatory evacuations also applied to Zone 1 of Terrebonne Parish, the municipal administration said.

Mandatory evacuation orders were issued Monday and expanded to all of Cameron Parish in Louisiana on Tuesday, according to an official's social media. Further east, both mandatory and voluntary evacuations were ordered in the Jefferson Parish town of Grand Isle, which was devastated by Category 4 Hurricane Ida in 2021.

Some parishes, including St. Mary and Terrebonne, began closing floodgates and distributing sandbags on Monday. Terrebonne Parish also declared a state of emergency, according to a news release.

Schools will remain closed in several Louisiana counties on Wednesday and Thursday, including Jefferson, Terrebonne and Orleans, which includes New Orleans.

In Mississippi, people in the town of Pass Christian have begun voluntarily evacuating.