Hurricane Ida strengthened to a Category 2 storm on Sunday. A hurricane watch was extended to the Florida Panhandle as Ida made its way across the Gulf of Mexico. The hurricane watch now stretches from southeastern Louisiana to Mexico Beach, Florida.
Forecasters at the U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami say Ida's winds are now near 100 mph (160 kph), and Ida could get stronger later Sunday. The watch means hurricane conditions are possible in the next 36 hours.
Ida could reach the Gulf Coast by Tuesday, though it was unclear how strong it would be by then.Ida was moving to the northwest near 10 mph and was expected to pick up some steam as it moved over open waters in the Gulf of Mexico.
Hurricane Ida blew through Cancun, Mexico on Sunday with large bands of wind and rain. Ida then continued north toward the Gulf of Mexico, where officials issued a hurricane watch for coastal Louisiana and Mississippi.
Heavy rain from Ida should begin having an impact on the central Gulf Coast later tonight and Monday. The heavy rain is forecast to move northeastward into the Southeast Monday night and Tuesday. Two to six inches of rain are possible along the path of the heavy rain.
It is possible that Ida could fully transition to an extratropical system before reaching the Gulf Coast Monday night or Tuesday morning as the threat of a hurricane diminishes.
More information: weather.gov
Cheryl Phillips
HULIQ.com
sources: yahoo.com, TWC.com, NOAA
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