Gordon Moving Quickly Across Eastern Gulf Of Mexico
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MIAMI (CBSMiami) -- A Hurricane Warning has been issued for the Alabama-Florida border, as Tropical Storm Gordon continues to move across the eastern Gulf of Mexico.
Gordon is expected to strengthen into a hurricane when it hits the central U.S. Gulf Coast late Tuesday, according to the National Hurricane Center.
At 11 p.m. Monday, the storm is continuing a west-northwestward to northwestward motion. It was centered 330 miles south-southeast of the mouth of the Mississippi River with maximum sustained winds of 60 mph, as the storm moves west-northwest at 17 mph.
Tropical storm force winds extend outward up to 45 miles from the center.
On Monday night, New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell urged some residents to evacuate ahead of Tropical Storm Gordon.
People all along the Gulf Coast, from Louisiana to the Florida panhandle, were busy preparing for the storm's arrival.
In New Orleans, a voluntary evacuation order is in effect for people who live in neighborhoods that are not protected by levees.
For everyone else, the mayor is urging them to stock up on supplies, and shelter in place.
Louisiana's governor has declared a state of emergency in advance of the storm's arrival.
A Storm Surge Warning is in effect from Shell Beach, Louisiana, to the Mississippi-Alabama border.
A Storm Surge Watch is in effect from the Mississippi-Alabama border.
A Hurricane Watch is in effect from the Mouth of the Pearl River to the Alabama-Florida Border.
A Tropical Storm Warning is in effect from the Okaloosa-Walton County Line and stretches from Golden Beach to Bonita Beach and from Craig Key to Ocean Reef, including Florida Bay. There is also a Tropical Storm Warning from the Okaloosa-Walton County Line westward to east of Morgan City, Louisiana, including Lake Pontchartrain and Lake Maurepas.
There is a Storm Surge Watch in effect for the Mississippi-Alabama border westward to the Mouth of the Mississippi River.
TROPICAL STORM FLORENCE
Meanwhile, Tropical Storm Florence continues to hold steady over the eastern Atlantic, about 1,135 miles west-northwest of the southernmost Cabo Verde Islands.
Florence was moving toward the west-northwest near 14 mph and maximum sustained winds of 70 mph with higher gusts.
A slow weakening trend is expected on Tuesday. There are no coastal watches or warnings in effect.
