Hurricane Ike Advisory 39, Watches And Warnings Issued For Gulf Coast

BULLETIN
HURRICANE IKE ADVISORY NUMBER 39
NWS TPC/NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER MIAMI FL AL092008
4 PM CDT WED SEP 10 2008
WATCHES AND WARNINGS ISSUED FOR THE GULF COAST...
AT 4 PM CDT, A TROPICAL STORM WARNING HAS BEEN ISSUED
FROM THE MOUTH OF THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER WESTWARD TO CAMERON
LOUISIANA. A TROPICAL STORM WARNING MEANS THAT TROPICAL STORM
CONDITIONS ARE EXPECTED WITHIN THE WARNING AREA WITHIN THE NEXT 24
HOURS.
AT4 pm CDT A HURRICANE WATCH HAS BEEN ISSUED FROM CAMERON WESTWARD TO PORT
MANSFIELD TEXAS. HURRICANE CONDITIONS ARE POSSIBLE
WITHIN THE WATCH AREA BY FRIDAY.
A TROPICAL STORM WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM WEST OF KEY WEST TO
THE DRY TORTUGAS. FOR STORM INFORMATION SPECIFIC TO YOUR AREA, INCLUDING
POSSIBLE
INLAND WATCHES AND WARNINGS, PLEASE MONITOR PRODUCTS ISSUED
BY YOUR LOCAL WEATHER OFFICE.
AT 4 PM CDT, THE CENTER OF HURRICANE IKE WAS LOCATED NEAR
LATITUDE 24.5 NORTH, LONGITUDE 86.1 WEST OR ABOUT 720 MILES, EAST OF
BROWNSVILLE TEXAS AND ABOUT 370 MILES, SOUTH-SOUTHEAST OF THE MOUTH OF THE
MISSISSIPPI RIVER.
IKE IS MOVING TOWARD THE NORTHWEST NEAR 8 MPH. A TURN BACK TO A
WEST-NORTHWESTWARD MOTION IS EXPECTED TONIGHT, AND A MOSTLY
WEST-NORTHWESTWARD MOTION THROUGH THE CENTRAL AND WESTERN GULF OF MEXICO IS
EXPECTED OVER THE NEXT COUPLE OF DAYS.
MAXIMUM SUSTAINED WINDS ARE NEAR 100 MPH WITH HIGHER
GUSTS. IKE IS A CATEGORY TWO HURRICANE ON THE SAFFIR-SIMPSON SCALE.
IKE IS EXPECTED TO BECOME A MAJOR HURRICANE WITHIN THE NEXT 24
HOURS.
IKE IS A VERY LARGE TROPICAL CYCLONE. HURRICANE FORCE WINDS EXTEND OUTWARD
UP TO 90 MILES FROM THE CENTER, AND TROPICAL STORM FORCE WINDS EXTEND
OUTWARD UP TO 205 MILES. THE LATEST MINIMUM CENTRAL PRESSURE REPORTED BY AN
AIR FORCE RESERVE UNIT RECONNAISSANCE AIRCRAFT WAS 958 MB, 28.29 INCHES.
COASTAL STORM SURGE FLOODING ALONG THE COASTS OF CUBA AND IN THE
FLORIDA KEYS SHOULD CONTINUE TO SUBSIDE TONIGHT. COASTAL STORM
SURGE FLOODING OF 3 TO 5 FEET ABOVE NORMAL TIDE LEVELS, ALONG WITH LARGE AND
DANGEROUS WAVES, CAN BE EXPECTED WITHIN THE TROPICAL
STORM WARNING AREA. ABOVE NORMAL TIDES OF 2 TO 4 FEET ARE EXPECTED
ELSEWHERE ALONG MUCH OF THE NORTH COAST OF THE GULF OF MEXICO
DURING THE NEXT DAY OR SO, BUT WILL BE INCREASING ALONG THE
WESTERN GULF COAST AS IKE APPROACHES.
IKE IS EXPECTED TO PRODUCE TOTAL RAINFALL ACCUMULATIONS OF 6 TO 12
INCHES OVER WESTERN CUBA, WITH ISOLATED MAXIMUM AMOUNTS OF UP TO
20 INCHES POSSIBLE. THESE RAINS ARE LIKELY TO CAUSE
LIFE-THREATENING FLASH FLOODS AND MUD SLIDES OVER MOUNTAINOUS
TERRAIN. RAINFALL AMOUNTS OF 1 TO 2 INCHES ARE POSSIBLE OVER EXTREME
SOUTHERN LOUISIANA AND OVER THE EXTREME NORTHERN YUCATAN PENINSULA.
REPEATING THE 4 PM CDT POSITION... 24.5 N... 86.1 W. MOVEMENT
TOWARD NORTHWEST NEAR 8 MPH. MAXIMUM SUSTAINED WINDS, 100 MPH. MINIMUM
CENTRAL PRESSURE, 958 MB. AN INTERMEDIATE ADVISORY WILL BE ISSUED BY THE
NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER AT 7 PM CDT FOLLOWED BY THE NEXT COMPLETE ADVISORY
AT 10 PM CDT.