Tropical Storm Gordon has changed little in organization on satellite images or on the radar presentation over the past several hours. On the forecast track, the center of Gordon will move across the eastern Gulf of Mexico today, and will approach the north-central Gulf Coast within the warning area late this afternoon or evening, and move inland over the lower Mississippi Valley tonight or early Wednesday.
Maximum sustained winds are near 65 mph (100 km/h) with higher gusts. Strengthening is expected today, and Gordon is forecast to be a hurricane when it makes landfall along the north-central Gulf Coast. Rapid weakening is expected after Gordon moves inland.
Tropical-storm-force winds extend outward up to 60 miles (95 km) from the center.
Let’s talk about the storm surge…
According to the National Hurricane Center, the combination of a dangerous storm surge and the tide will cause normally dry areas near the coast to be flooded by rising waters moving inland from the shoreline. The water could reach the following heights above ground somewhere in the indicated areas if the peak surge occurs at the time of high tide. Navarre, Florida to Dauphin Island, including Mobile Bay could be 2 to 4 ft.
Gordon is expected to produce total rain accumulations of 4 to 8 inches over the western Florida Panhandle, southwest Alabama, southern and central Mississippi, southeastern and northeastern Louisiana, and southern Arkansas, with isolated maximum amounts of 12 inches through late Thursday. This rainfall will cause flash flooding across portions of these areas.
Keep it locked to your local weather station for continued updates throughout the day.
Okaloosa schools & NWFSC closing Tuesday
A robocall was placed last night from the Okaloosa County School District to inform parents that schools with by closed on Tuesday, September 4 along with canceling after school activities.
“School District officials have been monitoring the progress of tropical storm Gordon and have been in communication with the office of emergency management operations. Based on the current track of tropical storm Gordon, guidance from the National Weather Service out of Mobile and our Okaloosa County Emergency Management director, schools will be closed tomorrow (Tuesday)…School district officials will continue to monitor weather conditions throughout the night and tomorrow. Another call out will be made tomorrow afternoon concerning school activities for Wednesday.”
Northwest Florida State College also announced that all classes and administrative operations are cancelled at all locations. Walton County schools will operate on a normal schedule.
Victims in car crash are being remembered by the community
Robert Brown and his wife, Meredith Snow, are being remembered by the community they were so much a part of after they were killed in a car accident on Friday. According to the Walton Sun, the couple was traveling east on Highway 98 when the wreck occurred at about 11:45 p.m. Friday, as another vehicle ran through a red light.
Brown played a big role in BOTE while Snow had recently retired from her job as a music teacher at Emerald Coast Middle School in Santa Rosa Beach.
In an interview with the Northwest Florida Daily News, Corey Cooper, CEO and owner of BOTE, said, “They were the high-water mark of what it takes to be a great human being. It’s tough losing both of them at the same time.”
To read more about Bob and Meredith, click here.
U.S. Tennis Association and the City of Fort Walton Beach
According to WEAR TV, the U.S. Tennis Association is putting down roots in the City of Fort Walton Beach with hopes of “helping local places re-establish the possibility of clubs that might be repurposed.”
In talking with Fort Walton Beach Recreation Director Jeff Peters, thanks to the new management agreement, newly refurbished courts, and other upgrades and amenities, it will turn the place into a showplace.
To read more on the new agreement and plans for the tennis center, click here.
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