Isaias strengthened into a major hurricane Friday as it headed toward the U.S. Gulf Coast, where final preparations were underway for potentially life-threatening storm surges and high winds.
Meanwhile, Hurricane Simon was headed toward Mexico’s Pacific coast and strengthened into a Category 2 storm late Friday morning. U.S. forecasters issued a hurricane warning for parts of the central and southwest coast, where hurricane-force winds were expected within 36 hours.
Tropical storm activity has been above average this season in the Pacific because of a strong El Niño, a natural, temporary warming of parts of the Pacific that warps weather worldwide. In the Atlantic, El Niño’s decapitating winds and the Gulf of Mexico’s toasty, storm-fueling waters are battling over Isaias’s future strength.
Here’s the latest:
Isaias could nudge fuel prices higher if Gulf refineries take a major hit
Hurricane Isaias is forecast to miss the oil industry’s biggest hubs along the Gulf Coast, but could still nudge fuel prices higher if it triggers power outages that shut down refineries for processing crude, according to experts.
An extended refinery shutdown would impact fuel supplies that already have taken a hit from the U.S. war against Iran and Russia’s war against Ukraine.
Experts say that could increase fuel prices by a few cents or even as much as a dollar per gallon. Refineries in Pascagoula, Mississippi, and Mobile, Alabama, account for 2.4% of the nation’s refining capacity.
If the storm moves through quickly with minimal impacts, refineries would continue to run at reduced capacity, and gasoline and diesel prices could rise just a few cents, said Carl Larry with the energy analysis firm Enverus.
Refineries could take weeks to fully recover from a major hit, he added.
Tropical storm-force winds are only a few hours from the coast
National Hurricane Center Director Michael Brennan says strong winds arriving at the coast in the early afternoon are expected to spread well inland during the hurricane — reaching as far as metro Atlanta and Tennessee.
Inland areas are also at risk of scattered power outages and tree damage, he said.
Storm surge will be a major concern with Isaias, with the highest water levels expected from the Alabama-Florida border to Grayton Beach in the western Florida Panhandle. Significant storm surge is also expected in Florida’s Big Bend region, Brennan said.
“So if you’re in these evacuation zones and you’ve been asked to leave by your local officials, please get out as soon as you can before conditions deteriorate further,” he said.
Brennan said the highest tornado risk will be Friday afternoon into the evening in central parts of the Panhandle to southwestern Georgia. That risk will expand Saturday to much of central and southern Georgia and parts of South Carolina, he added.
Lifeguards clear Florida’s Pensacola Beach
Double red flag warnings prohibiting swimming and wading were posted Friday morning as beachgoers were asked to evacuate. The surf was at about 6 feet (2 meters) and rising, officials said in a social media post.
Lifeguards were expected to leave the beach mid-morning after urging people to leave and stay safe during the storm.
“Bottom line is to just please be smart. Please be smart,” Pensacola Mayor D.C. Reeves said in a social media post. “You wouldn’t consciously put your lives in danger. Make sure that you don’t put the fire, the police — please do not put them in danger. They are not going to be able to respond.”
Reeves warned that bridges may be closed as conditions worsen.
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