Tropical Storm Marco began falling apart Monday, easing one threat to the Gulf Coast but setting the stage for the arrival of Laura later in the week as a potential Category 2 hurricane with winds topping 110 mph, CNBC reported. The two-storm combination could bring a history-making onslaught of wind and coastal flooding from Texas to Alabama, forecasters said.
Tropical Storm Laura, a far more formidable threat, will reach top wind speeds of 105 mph by the time it slams into the coast of Louisiana or Texas late Wednesday or early Thursday, according to the South Florida Sun Sentinel.
“All indications are that Laura will steadily gain strength as it sets her menacing sights on the Texas and Louisiana coasts,” said Mike Chesterfield, director of weather presentation at The Weather Channel. “The recipe is there for a dangerous hurricane to make landfall late Wednesday night into Thursday morning. All coastal residents in states that border the northwestern Gulf of Mexico should begin their preparations now by checking their evacuation kits, monitoring the latest forecasts, and listening to their local officials.”
As Laura passed Cuba, it brought rough weather to South Florida on Monday.
Tropical Storm Marco weakened to a minimal tropical storm by Monday afternoon. The Hurricane Center predicted it would further weaken but cautioned that the remnant circulation would bring heavy rain and gusty winds to the northern Gulf Coast through Tuesday.
The FCC activated its Disaster Information Reporting System (DIRS) for Tropical Storms Marco and Laura as they threaten the Gulf states, including Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas.
The Commission requests that communications providers that provide service to any areas listed below submit and update information through DIRS regarding the status of their communications equipment, restoration efforts, and power, such as whether they are using commercial power or backup power. Communications providers can access DIRS here.
Reports were requested to start by 10 a.m. today, August 25. Counties of interest for this activation include:
Arkansas: Arkansas, Ashley, Baxter, Benton, Boone, Bradley, Calhoun, Carroll, Chicot, Clark, Clay, Cleburne, Cleveland, Columbia, Conway, Craighead, Crawford, Crittenden, Cross, Dallas, Desha, Drew, Faulkner, Franklin, Fulton, Garland, Grant, Greene, Hempstead, Hot Spring, Howard, Independence, Izard, Jackson, Jefferson, Johnson, Lafayette, Lawrence, Lee, Lincoln, Little River, Logan, Lonoke, 2 Madison, Marion, Miller, Mississippi, Monroe, Montgomery, Nevada, Newton, Ouachita, Perry, Phillips, Pike, Poinsett, Polk, Pope, Prairie, Pulaski, Randolph, Saline, Scott, Searcy, Sebastian, Sevier, Sharp, St. Francis, Stone, Union, Van Buren, Washington, White, Woodruff, Yell
Louisiana: Acadia, Allen, Ascension, Assumption, Avoyelles, Beauregard, Bienville, Bossier, Caddo, Calcasieu, Caldwell, Cameron, Catahoula, Claiborne, Concordia, De Soto, East Baton Rouge, East Carroll, East Feliciana, Evangeline, Franklin, Grant, Iberia, Iberville, Jackson, Jefferson, Jefferson Davis, La Salle, Lafayette, Lafourche, Lincoln, Livingston, Madison, Morehouse, Natchitoches, Orleans, Ouachita, Plaquemines, Pointe Coupee, Rapides, Red River, Richland, Sabine, St. Bernard, St. Charles, St. Helena, St. James, St. John The Baptist, St. Landry, St. Martin, St. Mary, St. Tammany, Tangipahoa, Tensas, Terrebonne, Union, Vermilion, Vernon, Washington, Webster, West Baton Rouge, West Carroll, West Feliciana, Winn
Mississippi: Adams, Amite, Attala, Bolivar, Carroll, Claiborne, Coahoma, Copiah, Covington, Forrest, Franklin, George, Greene, Grenada, Hancock, Harrison, Hinds, Holmes, Humphreys, Issaquena, Jackson, Jasper, Jefferson, Jefferson Davis, Jones, Lamar, Lawrence, Leake, Leflore, Lincoln, Madison, Marion, Montgomery, Newton, Pearl River, Perry, Pike, Quitman, Rankin, Scott, Sharkey, Simpson, Smith, Stone, Sunflower, Tallahatchie, Tunica, Walthall, Warren, Washington, Wilkinson, Yazoo
Texas: Anderson, Angelina, Bowie, Brazoria, Camp, Cass, Chambers, Cherokee, Fort Bend, Galveston, Gregg, Grimes, Hardin, Harris, Harrison, Houston, Jasper, Jefferson, Leon, Liberty, Madison, Marion, Matagorda, Montgomery, Morris, Nacogdoches, Newton, Orange, Panola, Polk, Red River, Rusk, Sabine, San Augustine, San Jacinto, Shelby, Smith, Titus, Trinity, Tyler, Upshur, Walker, Waller, Wood
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