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Hurricane Douglas is barreling toward Hawaii as a Category 4 impacting the islands by Saturday, and Tropical Storm Hanna was already impacting Texas on Thursday, while Tropical Storm Gonzalo will be near Puerto Rico by early Monday
Three separate weather systems could threaten the US in the Pacific, the Gulf of Mexico, and the Caribbean with tropical-force winds and rain by Saturday and in the coming week.
Due to coronavirus, most people are being advised to shelter in place. Officials in these areas are warning residents to prepare now for potential impacts from the storm. Make sure to have an emergency kit that contains at least a 3-day supply of water and food.
Have a flashlight and emergency weather radio (battery-powered or hand-cranked) in case the power goes out. It’s also a good idea to have a backup battery-powered charger for your cell phone, so start looking for phone deals on portable chargers today.
Hurricane Douglas is barreling towards Hawaii as a Category 4 with maximum sustained winds of near 130 miles per hour and higher gusts, KHON2 reports. The National Weather Service/National Hurricane Center places the storm directly over the center of the islands by 2 PM Sunday, but whether it should start impacting the islands in the early morning hours.
The storm is expected to decrease in strength by the time it nears in moves north the big island of Hawaii, downgrading to a Category 1, then to a tropical storm as it moves directly over the smaller islands in the chain.
The biggest threats to Hawaii will be flash flooding and mudslides.
Tropical Storm Hanna has formed in the Gulf of Mexico, and tropical rain bands are already expected to begin affecting coastal areas on Thursday before the storm makes landfall on Saturday around 1 PM local time.
On Thursday, the National Weather Service (NWS) issued warnings for the coastal areas of the Gulf of Mexico from Texas to Florida.
Tropical storm warning: Along the Texas coast and inland from Brownsville to Houston; along the north-central Gulf including flower garden banks Marine sanctuary; the Northwest Gulf including Stetson Bank.
Tropical storm watch: Texas, including Houston/Galveston.
Hazardous seas warning: Southeastern Texas and the entire coast of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and the Western Florida Panhandle.
The NWS issued a flash flooding warning on Thursday over the entirety of the coastal areas of Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama along the Gulf of Mexico.
Forecasters expect the system will bring winds of 45-65 miles per hour and rainfall between 3 and six inches, with higher amounts locally.
Tropical Storm Gonzalo is expected to reach category 1 strength on Friday and be near Barbados, Granada, and Trinidad into Fargo by Saturday. The system is expected to downgrade to a tropical storm as it nears Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic on Monday. By Tuesday, Tropical Storm Gonzalo is expected to be near Haiti and Jamaica.
The biggest threat will be hurricane-force winds which will reach near 80 miles per hour with higher gusts possible, and flash flooding will be the biggest threat on the Eastern Caribbean islands over the weekend, ABC News reports.
