Boarded windows and evacuations as major hurricane nears US Gulf coast

Coastal towns in Florida and Alabama prepared for Hurricane Isaias on Friday, as it approached the US Gulf Coast with dangerous storm surges and 185 kph winds. Mandatory evacuations were in effect for tens of thousands of residents in Florida's Panhandle and Alabama's Gulf Coast. The Category 3 hurricane, the first of an unusually quiet season, was expected to make landfall between Mobile, Alabama, and Grayton Beach in Florida's Panhandle on Friday evening.

Known for its pristine white sand beaches and holiday homes, the 145-kilometre stretch of coast is home to small coastal towns like Destin, Florida.

National Hurricane Centre Director Michael Brennan warned evacuees that conditions would worsen, particularly as the storm surge approached after dark. Scientists have linked climate change to the intensification of hurricanes like Isaias in the Gulf of Mexico. The storm was anticipated to bring powerful winds capable of causing significant structural damage to beach houses, while modern homes built to coastal codes might withstand the impact.

Storm surges of up to 2.7 meters were forecast around the Alabama-Florida border. President Donald Trump had canceled his trip to Alabama for a college football game, as the hurricane threatened Tuscaloosa, the city hosting the event.

Heavy rainfall, up to 38 cm in localized areas of Florida's Panhandle and Big Bend region, was also expected. Oil companies evacuated staff from 129 oil and gas production platforms, representing 35 percent of the 371 platforms operating in the Gulf of Mexico. Hurricane-force winds were predicted as far as 100 miles inland in southern Alabama, potentially triggering tornadoes.

Between 2 and 5 inches (5 to 13 cm) of rain were forecast across the southeastern US, extending as far north as the southern Appalachian Mountains and coastal areas of the Carolinas.