UPDATE: No changes with the National Hurricane Center's 1 p.m. advisory; the next full advisory is out at 4:00.
The National Hurricane Center has started issuing advisories on what will become Tropical Storm Barry, currently it is listed as Potential Tropical Cyclone Two. The forecast currently has winds around 30 mph with a pressure of 1011 mb, moving west south west at 8 mph. The forecast calls for a tropical storm by Thursday evening, and eventually strengthening into a category 1 hurricane before landfall in Acadiana on Saturday.
A Tropical Storm Watch has been issued from the St. Mary Parish border through the mouth of the Pearl River, this same location also now has a Storm Surge Watch posted. As the system drifts west those watches and warning will eventually expand to the west.
This doesn't drastically change the major talking points, this is continuing to look like it will be a major rain event over the weekend with rain fall totals that will average around 10-15" of rain with hotspots possibly up to around 20-25" which will make flooding a major concern. At least tropical storm forced winds (35 mph or greater) will be possible starting Friday, but hurricane forced winds will be felt closer to the center of circulation. This of course means that storm surge will be dangerous so the coast should be avoided.
As of the 10:00 am advisory there is now word on evacuations, but as that information becomes available we will push that out so make sure to keep updated on the situation. The arrival of the storm is going to be Saturday but the impacts will start to be felt on Friday so preparation need to be made over the next couple of days. Review your plan with your family and make sure everyone is working on the same page, this will prevent confusion and will allow you to work quickly and effectively. This is going to be a heavy rain event for all of Acadiana so minimize the risk to your home by making sure your ditches are clear and gutters are clean. The next advisory is expected to come out at 1:00 pm so we'll be back with the next round of advisory.
