BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Tropical Storm Francine churned in extremely warm waters in the Gulf of Mexico with increasing strength and was expected to reach hurricane status Tuesday before making landfall in Louisiana on Wednesday.
A hurricane warning was in effect along the Louisiana coast from the border with Texas eastward to Grand Isle, about 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of New Orleans, and a tropical storm warning extended eastward from there to the mouth of the Pearl River, according to the National Hurricane Center. A storm surge warning stretched from just east of Houston to the mouth of the Mississippi River south of New Orleans. Such a warning means there’s a chance of life-threatening flooding.
Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry urged residents “not to panic, but be prepared” and heed evacuation warnings. Forecasters said Francine’s landfall in south Louisiana was expected Wednesday afternoon as a Category 2 hurricane with winds of 96 to 110 mph (155 to 175 kph).
“We do not want people to wait to the last minute to get on the road and then run out of fuel,” Landry said. “We put a lot of information throughout the summer, throughout hurricane season, so that people can be prepared. The more prepared we are, the easier it is for us.”
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As of late morning Tuesday, Francine remained at tropical storm strength with maximum sustained winds of 65 mph (100 kph), according to the National Hurricane Center. The system was located about 120 miles (195 kilometers) southeast of the mouth of the Rio Grande River and was moving north-northeastward at 8 mph (13 kph).
The storm is moving over extremely warm Gulf waters that will serve as fuel to strengthen it. Water temperatures are about 87 degrees (31 degrees Celsius) where Francine is located, said Brian McNoldy, senior research associate at the University of Miami’s Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric, and Earth Science.
“The ocean heat content averaged over the entire Gulf is the highest it’s been on record for the
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