This satellite image from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shows Tropical Storm Isaias off the east coast of Mexico on Wednesday, October 7, 2026.
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration/via AP
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National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration/via AP
Isaias strengthened Wednesday evening to become the first hurricane of the Atlantic season as it headed toward the U.S. Gulf Coast, the National Hurricane Center said.
Forecasters warned it was poised to make landfall between the Mississippi coast and the Florida Panhandle late Friday or early Saturday and was expected to bring heavy rain and potentially flash flooding.
The center of the cyclone was about 450 miles (745 kilometers) south-southwest of the Mississippi River, with maximum sustained winds of about 75 mph (120 kph), according to an advisory from the Miami-based hurricane center. It was moving east-northeast at a speed of 9 mph (15 km/h).
The hurricane formed at the end of the season
Isaias is more than four months into the Atlantic hurricane season, nearly tying the 121-year-old record for the last hurricane to form in the region. According to the National Weather Service, the record dates back to 1905, when the first Atlantic hurricane of the year formed on October 8.
The Atlantic hurricane season has been unusually quiet this year due to a strong El Niño, which disrupts storm formation over that ocean. Storm activity was above average in the Pacific, where Tropical Storm Simon formed off the coast of Mexico on Wednesday.
After Isaias (pronounced ees-ah-EE’-ahs, according to the hurricane center) became a tropical storm Wednesday in the warm waters of eastern Mexico, communities in its potential path worked quickly to prepare. Some Gulf oil wells suspended production while the governors of Florida and Alabama declared states of emergency in dozens of counties.
Isaias is expected to strike along a wide swath of coastline very familiar with major hurricanes.
Hurricane Camille, one of the worst storms of the 20th century, killed more than 250 people after making landfall near Waveland, Mississippi, in 1969. In 2005, Hurricane Katrina leveled parts of Mississippi, flooded New Orleans and killed nearly 1,400 people. And Hurricane Michael leveled homes and buildings near Panama City, Florida in 2018.
Oil production and tourism already affected
Ahead of the storm, oil and gas producers shut down a significant portion of offshore production in the Gulf, which accounts for nearly 15% of the crude pumped into the United States each year.
On Wednesday, about 25% of the region’s oil production was temporarily halted, removing about 511,000 barrels per day from the market, according to the Marine Minerals Administration. Eight of the Gulf’s 371 manned oil platforms have been evacuated.
With oil prices already high, the production cuts are large enough to affect markets, even if other Gulf hurricanes have caused greater disruptions, said Jim Burkhard, global head of crude oil market research at S&P Global Energy. What’s more concerning, he said, is whether Isaias would hit as a powerful storm near the refineries.
“I would rate oil market risk as moderate, but increasing,” Burkhard said in an email.
In Gulf Shores, Alabama, organizers canceled the National Shrimp Festival, which was scheduled for Thursday through the weekend. The event attracted around 325,000 people last year. Gulf Shores and Orange Beach issued a statement encouraging residents in low-lying areas to voluntarily evacuate.
Gulf Shores resident Maranie Adams gathered water and other supplies as her family moved their belongings, including a hot tub motor, to higher ground.
Adams said she, her husband and two adult sons planned to ride out the storm at their home, about a half-mile from shore, sheltering indoors alongside their flock of chickens.
“We have to get crates to bring them into the house so they don’t fly away,” Adams said. “It’s going to be loud.”
Alabama Governor Kay Ivey declared a state of emergency in 40 counties, saying on the social platform »
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis declared one for 25 counties in the Panhandle and Big Bend regions. The declaration activates the state’s emergency management plan for hurricanes, allowing officials to deploy responders and equipment in the event of a disaster. The state also planned to deploy an urban search and rescue task force based in Miami.
In Pensacola, electric utilities were pre-positioning crews to quickly repair any power outages. Municipal authorities provided sand to residents to fill sandbags to protect their homes from flooding. And Mayor DC Reeves urged people to check to see if their elderly neighbors and others might need help.
“There’s obviously no need to panic at this point,” Reeves said at a news conference. “It’s really about preparation.”
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