Florida - Thousands Evacuated As Storm Alberto Strengthens

The US hurricane season started early as several states along America’s Gulf Coast declared emergencies just as the region prepares to be battered by the season’s first subtropical storm. Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama see tropical storm Alberto arriving with probable heavy downpours.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Here are the 5 am EDT / 4 am CDT key messages for <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Alberto?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Alberto</a>. For more information, visit <a href="https://t.co/tW4KeGdBFb">https://t.co/tW4KeGdBFb</a> <a href="https://t.co/jtF7RQ00uf">https://t.co/jtF7RQ00uf</a> <a href="https://t.co/NuOacfiJpy">pic.twitter.com/NuOacfiJpy</a></p>&mdash; NHC Atlantic Ops (@NHC_Atlantic) <a href="https://twitter.com/NHC_Atlantic/status/1001024763672846336?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 28, 2018</a></blockquote>

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The National Hurricane Center in Miami told everyone to take the necessary precautions and issued various weather warnings for the regions. Waves, some as high as 18 feet, were forecast to hit the popular beaches of the coasts of Alabama and northwest Florida.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Emergency warnings issued as subtropical Storm Alberto closed on US Gulf Coast <a href="https://t.co/FfIYfp2qYf">https://t.co/FfIYfp2qYf</a> <a href="https://t.co/SACgDkhzI0">pic.twitter.com/SACgDkhzI0</a></p>&mdash; The Independent (@Independent) <a href="https://twitter.com/Independent/status/1000937763712258048?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 28, 2018</a></blockquote>

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The centre warned: "Heavy rains and gusty winds continue to spread. Hazardous storm surge is possible along portions of the central and eastern Gulf Coast beginning Sunday."

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Here&#39;s the latest on Subtropical Storm <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Alberto?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Alberto</a>: <br><br>The air force hurricane hunters have found stronger winds, now up 65 mph, in the storm&#39;s core. The National Hurricane Center will be issuing a special advisory within the hour to update the forecast. <a href="https://t.co/37xRZIJSyD">pic.twitter.com/37xRZIJSyD</a></p>&mdash; The Weather Channel (@weatherchannel) <a href="https://twitter.com/weatherchannel/status/1000893766746755072?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 28, 2018</a></blockquote>

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Meanwhile the Governor of Florida, Mr Rick Scott issued an executive order declaring a state of emergency for the whole state: "As we continue to monitor Subtropical Storm Alberto’s northward path toward Florida, it is critically important that all Florida counties have every available resource to keep families safe and prepare for the torrential rain and severe flooding this storm will bring."

As Alberto comes to the US over Memorial day weekend, it is expected to disrupt travel in several states on Monday, when people will return back home.

Last year was nothing short of a disaster when a great number of hurricanes hit the US and the Carribean area. Given that hurricane season seems to start even earlier in 2018, many are bracing themselves for what is next.

Source:

https://weather.com/storms/hurricane/news/2018-05-27-subtropical-tropical-storm-alberto-forecast-gulf-coast-florida