Hurricane Delta Now a Major Category 4 Hurricane

As of 11:20 am, The NOAA Hurricane Hunters recon mission found that Hurricane Delta has strengthened into a  Category 4 ‘major’ hurricane with sustained winds of 130 mph and a minimum central pressure of 954 mb.

Hurricane warnings are in place for the Yucatan Peninsula as this storm will continue to strengthen before moving over the northeastern edge of the region Wednesday.

Dangerous storm surge of 6-9 feet, rainfall of 4-6 inches with isolated areas receiving up to 10 inches and devastating wind gusts are expected for the northern Yucatan Peninsula, Cayman Islands western Cuba over the next 24 – 48 hours.

This storm will weaken as it moves over the Peninsula, but will restrengthen to a major hurricane before making landfall along the northern Gulf coast late Friday into Saturday. The further west this storm moves within the Gulf, the more opportunity it will have to intensify. Current projections have this storm making landfall along the LA coast, but areas from Port Arthur to Pensacola will need to closely monitor this storm.

Local impacts will be rain and storms beginning Saturday. The ultimate track of this storm will ultimately dictate when the rain begins in the Carolinas and how much rainfall we could receive locally.