September 10, 10 a.m.
Francine remains a strong tropical storm with winds of 65 mph and gusts up to 75 mph. The storm has also started to make a northeasterly jog into the Gulf of Mexico, which is good news for Southeast Texas. If the storm continues to track away from the Texas coastline today, then the impacts from Francine will continue to be minimal at best of most of Southeast Texas. The exception is for our coastline where a Tropical storm Watch and Coastal Flood Warning are still in effect.
Additionally, the latest forecast track has Francine making landfall in Louisiana Wednesday as a high-end category one hurricane. While the intensity at landfall might have gone down slightly, the impacts remain the same. Up to a 10 foot strong surge and hurricane force winds could lead to life-threatening conditions for those along the Louisiana coast.
September 10, 7 A.m.
Tropical Storm Francine, currently located over the western Gulf of Mexico, will track near the northeastern Mexico and south Texas coastline through Tuesday before approaching the Louisiana coast on Wednesday. Francine will remain in a favorable environment for further strengthening through the middle of the week. Francine should strengthen into a hurricane Tuesday morning with a landfall expected along the Louisiana coast Wednesday afternoon as a Category 2 hurricane.
Rough surf and coastal inundation can be expected with the approach of Francine. A surge of 1-3 feet is forecast for a broad area along much of the Gulf coast. A storm surge of 3-6 feet can occur from near the Texas and Louisiana border eastward to near Gulfport, Mississippi, with a storm surge of 6-10 feet expected along portions of the central and western Louisiana coast. An even higher storm surge of 10-15 feet is expected near and just east of where Francine makes landfall along the coast of Louisiana.
