Laura expected to be a major hurricane at landfall; impacts could be similar to Hurricane Rita

SHREVEPORT, La. (KTAL/KMSS) – 4 pm Tuesday NHC Advisory: The latest advisory from the National Hurricane Center shows that Hurricane Laura has strengthened a little. Maximum sustained winds are now estimated to be near 80 mph. Laura continues to move towards the WNW.

You can see in the Laura impact slideshow below that the latest forecast from NHC has changed very little. We are still expecting a landfall Tuesday night shortly after midnight near the Texas and Lousiana border. Tropical storm and hurricane watches are already in place for the southern half of the area. We can expect to see wind gusts of 40 to 80 mph with the strongest gusts over the southern edge of the area where the storm arrives sooner. We can also expect to see very heavy rain with totals of 5 to 7 inches for most of the area. Flash flooding will become a concern Thursday.

It is possible that the impacts from Laura will be similar to Hurricane Rita back in 2005. You can see below that the impacts we experienced then are simalar to what is forecast for Laura. The issue that we could have with Laura is that it will move through the area faster and could bring stronger wind. Notice the number of power outages experienced then. I’d expect a similar number by Thursday evening.

1 pm Tuesday NHC Advisory: The latest advisory from the National Hurricane Center indicates no change from the 10 am Advisory. Maximum sustatined winds are still at 75 mph. The next forecast update from NHC will be issued shortly before 4pm. Below is a look at the latest position of Laura, the latest NHC forecast, and latest model forecast for wind gusts, and rainfall.