Sand in the Coffee, Vol. 124: the hurricane warning, and how to leave the coast without making it worse
If you’re a visitor, today is the day to leave. Not tomorrow morning, not after one more beach walk.
This is a real storm, so this is the calm column. A Hurricane Warning is in effect for Escambia County and much of the northern Gulf Coast, according to NorthEscambia. FOX10 reports Isaias is forecast to become a hurricane Thursday, potentially reaching Category 2 strength before turning north toward the northern Gulf Coast. Gulf Shores and Orange Beach officials are urging visitors to leave the coast and residents in flood-prone areas to consider evacuating. I won’t give you a track, a wind speed or a timeline. Read those from the National Hurricane Center at nhc.noaa.gov, not from me.
if you’re a guest
- Call your rental or front desk this morning. Ask whether they are asking guests to leave, how checkout works, and what happens to the rest of your stay. Get the answer in writing, even a text.
- Go early. Traffic leaving a coast is always worse the later it starts. Fill the tank before you load the car.
- Take what matters. Medications, chargers, ID, documents, anything you’d be sorry to lose. Photograph the unit as you leave it.
- Tell somebody your route. A text to family with where you’re headed and when you expect to arrive is enough.
- Pets go with you. Don’t leave them in a unit.
if you live here
Finish the prep today. Bring in the chairs, umbrellas and anything on a balcony, charge what charges, and check your zone with your county emergency management office. In Baldwin County, a shelter opens at 3 p.m. Thursday at the Baldwin County Coliseum in Robertsdale, per FOX10. Escambia County public schools are closed Friday.
what’s canceled
The National Shrimp Festival in Gulf Shores was canceled Wednesday, and plenty of other events have moved. Check with the organizer before you drive anywhere, and see /events/ for the calendar, with the caveat that it may lag behind the cancellations.
where to look
Keep /beach-today/ open for flags and conditions as they change. If you want to see the sky and surf yourself, the cam is live at /live-cam/ while the power and the connection hold. That is a view, not a forecast.
the one thing to skip
The beach. Rip currents and rough surf arrive well before the weather does, and a hurricane warning is not a surf report. Say goodbye from the parking lot and go.
The beach will still be here. It always is, a little rearranged. Be early rather than late, check on a neighbor, and come back when the all-clear is real.
— Chris
P.S. Owners: your specials, menu link, or a reader promo code go straight on your page. Claim it free: /submit/claim/
