Tropical Storm Barry heads toward the Louisiana coast, expected to become a hurricane
ATLANTA (FOX 5 Atlanta) - The National Hurricane Center continues to issue advisories for Tropical Storm Barry over the northern Gulf of Mexico.
As of 11 a.m. Friday, the winds increased to 65 mph and it was located 100 miles southwest of the Mississippi River delta. The very slow movement - west-northwest at only 5 mph creates the biggest issue.
Slow movement guarantees extremely high rainfall totals along it's path into Louisiana, regardless of whether or not it's peak intensity is a strong tropical storm or a minimal hurricane at landfall along the Louisiana coast.
The current path of this system keeps it far enough west that north Georgia will only see limited impacts. However, rich tropical moisture will continue to pump into our area and lead to more storms each afternoon until the storm system pushes off farther east.
Even though we aren't included in a Severe Weather Outlook, the afternoon and evening storms will be capable of producing torrential rain, frequent lightning and gusty winds. Much like the storms Thursday night, some areas will get several inches of rain over a short period of time while others don't see a drop.
The active weather pattern will continue throughout the weekend, but there will still be plenty of dry time the first half of the day for outdoor activities.
A Hurricane WARNING is in effect for the Louisiana coast from Intracoastal City to Grand Isle. A Hurricane Warning means that hurricane conditions are expected somewhere within the warning area. A warning is typically issued 36 hours before the anticipated first occurrence of tropical-storm-force winds.
A Tropical Storm WARNING is in effect between the mouth of the Pearl River to Grand Isle, Louisiana and between Intracoastal City to Cameron, Louisiana. This includes the cities of New Orleans and Baton Rouge. A warning means that tropical storm conditions are likely in the area within the next 36 hours.
A Hurricane WATCH is in effect for the mouth of the Mississippi River to Grand Isle, Louisiana and between Intracoastal City to Cameron, Louisiana. This means that hurricane conditions are likely in the area within the next 48 hours.
A Tropical Storm WATCH is also in effect for areas between the Pearl River delta and the Mississippi/Alabama state line and Lake Pontchartrain, including the city of New Orleans. This means that tropical storm conditions are likely in the area within the next 48 hours.
Don't forget that you can track the latest tropical updates on your mobile device with our FOX 5 Atlanta Storm Team app. Just open FOX 5 Live VIPIR and turn on "tropics" in the menu option.
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