The Gulf of Mexico, on Sunday, saw the formation of tropical storm Nicholas, threatening floods and heavy rains in coastal areas of Louisiana, Texas and Mexico. Forecasters at the National Hurricane Center in Miami said tropical storm warnings were issued for coastal Texas and the northeast coast of Mexico.
Nicholas is expected to produce total rainfall of 5 to 10 inches (13 to 25 centimeters), with isolated maximum amounts of 15 inches, across portions of coastal Texas into southwest Louisiana on Sunday through midweek.
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“The storm is projected to move slowly up the coastland which could dump torrential amounts of rain over several days,” said meteorologist Donald Jones of the National Weather Service in Lake Charles, La.
“Heavy rain, flash flooding appears to be the biggest threat across our region with Nicholas,” he said.
“The storm has the potential to dump as much as 15 to 25 inches (38 to 64 centimeters) of rain over several days in isolated areas either in southeast Texas or southwest Louisiana,” he added.
Texas Gov Greg Abbott deployed rescue teams and emergency medical groups on standby across the length of the Texas Gulf Coast.
“We will continue to closely monitor this storm and take all necessary precautions to keep Texans safe,” Abbott said in a statement. “I encourage Texans to follow the guidance and warnings of their local officials and be mindful of potential heavy rain and flooding.”
The threat comes merely two weeks after the devastating Hurricane Ida, that slammed Louisiana, took nearly 26 lives and rendered people homeless.
Bob Henson, a meteorologist at Yale Climate Connections, said in an email that the “heaviest rainfall would most likely hit southeast Texas and southwest Louisiana, where some localized amounts could hit 10 to 15 inches (25 to 38 centimeters) or more over the next several days”.
“Further east, there could be several inches of rain across southeast Louisiana, where Ida struck,” Henson added.
