Forecasters in Mobile and Baldwin Counties are keeping an eye out for the approach of Tropical Storm Fred, and the path of Tropical Storm Grace. The Alabama Gulf Coast got good news over the weekend. That’s when forecasters said Fred might move east with landfall along the Florida panhandle. Alabama residents aren’t relaxing just yet.
“The thing that we really need people to understand is these storms can change direction quickly and they can change intensity very quickly,” said Grant Brown, Gulf Shore public information officer. “People need to make sure they’re monitoring television stations and social media networks.”
The Alabama Gulf Coast is predicted to have strong rip currents, surf up to eight feet and up to three inches of rain if Fred hits the Panhandle. Baldwin County opened its Emergency Operations Center on Sunday as Fred moved up the Gulf toward the Alabama coast. Jenni Guerry, Baldwin EMA deputy director, says they’re still keeping a close eye on the storm.
“We’re going to continue to monitor that and as the storm changes or shifts in track and considering the amount of movement that the track has had up to this point, we do anticipate more changes to come,” said Guerry.
Tropical Storm Grace is predicted to also come into the Gulf around Wednesday night. Its course is more westerly, but emergency managers say Grace could result in storm surges or rip tides for the Alabama coast.
Editor's note:
APR’s Guy Busby has reported on a recent hurricane disaster drill in Baldwin County as well as the ongoing effort to repair damage from last year’s Hurricanes Sally and Zeta. Click below for these stories. Guy, and APR Gulf coast correspondent Lynn Oldshue, were also part of the team that produced a documentary on the long term impact of the BP Gulf oil spill, which was honored with APR’s fourth national Sigma Delta Chi award from the Society of Professional Journalists.
