Isidore made landfall today at about 2am CDT on Port Fourchon, LA (about 75 miles south of New Orleans) as a 55kt Tropical Storm. Since there was no eyewall, the exact location doesn't matter too much; the storm is huge and all surrounding states will feel roughly the same effects (something I emphasized during a -unexpected- radio interview with Denver's KOA News Radio yesterday morning, along with the inland flooding potential). At 15Z, TS Isidore was located at 30.7N 89.7W and tracking NNE at 12kts. This motion will accelerate with time as it merges with a trough. Intensity is 50kts and 985mb. Further weakening is expected as the storm is now over land and being sheared by that trough. The storm surge on the east side of the center was moderate, 3-6' above tides in most areas, then about 10' above tides in the more shallow bays. Keep in mind that a good portion of southern LA is at or below sea level in the first place. In addition to the storm surge, places along the central Gulf coast will receive on the order of 2 feet of rain from Isidore. Also, there have already been several tornadoes associated with the Tropical Storm, though I believe there have not yet been any injuries or deaths. Tornado Watches and Warnings cover parts of LA, MS, AL, FL, and GA and I suspect the watches will be shifted north as the rainbands move further inland. There are Coastal Flood Watches and Warnings along those same states; Tropical Storm Warnings for eastern LA, MS, AL, and the FL panhandle; and Flood Watches for every state from the Gulf coast up to New England, including LA, MS, AL, FL, GA, TN, KY, IN, OH, PA, and NY. People at highest risk for tropical cyclone-spawned tornadoes are those living in eastern MS, southern TN, all of AL, western GA, and the western FL panhandle. This would be a good day for everyone in the states mentioned in this section to keep a local radio station or TV channel on just in case action is required, whether it's involving a tornado or a flash flood. http://www.spc.noaa.gov/products/wwa/ is a good source for monitoring the Watches and Warnings, but should not replace local broadcasts from your NWS office. Yesterday at 21Z, Kyle was upgraded to a hurricane, the third of the season. The satellite signature is fairly good; there's a small ragged eye that microwave, visible, and infrared imagery all pick up, but the convection is not very deep (cloud tops aren't very cold). The drift to the SW over warmer SSTs has made all the difference, but he exists in a small patch of the Atlantic where the vertical shear is favorable for the development of a small storm. At 15Z today, he was at 27.8N 58.7W (770km SE of Bermuda) and heading WSW at 8kts. Maximum sustained winds are 75kts and the MSLP is 980mb. Only slight strengthening is possible in the short term before an advancing trough introduces higher shear. Of course, as you're probably envisioning, he's already completed one loop, and now he's heading SW, but a trough is coming, so he'll turn back NE ahead of it. By the time he's done, it will be an interesting track to look at! Lili was downgraded to a TD today at 15Z and the last advisory has been issued, unless regeneration occurs (which could very well happen). An aircraft in the storm was unable to find a defined low-level center, and the convection has been somewhat disorganized. Her position at 15Z was 15.2N 72.5W (roughly halfway between Colombia's Guajira Peninsula and Haiti), winds were reported as 30kts with 1006mb central pressure. Redevelopment is forecast on Sunday morning just south of the western tip of Cuba as she heads into the same area that Isidore did when he became a hurricane... between the Yucatan Peninsula and Cuba, perhaps entering the Gulf by Monday afternoon.
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