Tropical Depression 13 now Tropical Storm Lee; coastal officials on alert

Coastal Alabama emergency management officials in Mobile and Baldwin counties are urging residents in low-lying areas prone to flooding to keep tabs on Tropical Storm Lee and be ready to take action if water starts rising.At noon, the National Hurricane Center upgraded what had been Tropical Depression 13 into Tropical Storm Lee, which continues linger off the Louisiana coast. Heavy rainbands from the storm continue to spread across much of southeastern and south-central Louisiana.
The storm is centered southwest of the mouth of the Mississippi River, with maximum sustained winds of 40 mph. It is now moving northwest at 2 mph and has a minimum central pressure of 29.62 inches.

At this time, coastal Alabama is not included in a tropical storm warning that extends from Pascagoula, Mississippi, westward to Sabine Pass, Texas.
Projected heavy rains of as much as 15 inches will bring the threat of inland flooding, John Kilcullen, director of operations with the Mobile County EMA, said.
At the coast, strong rip currents and high surf are expected and coastal flooding is possible along Dauphin Island’s west end and in the Bayou La Batre and Coden areas, where elevation is from 0 to 10 feet, said Kilcullen.
The EMA is reviewing plans and resources, sharing information with other organizations and keeping local officials updated on the situation, he said.
Currently, there are no plans to open evacuation shelters unless the situation changes, he said.
In Baldwin County, emergency management officials are likewise keeping tabs on the system and placing people and resources on standby in case they are needed, according to county spokeswoman Paula Tillman.
“It looks like we’re going to be on the outer edges of the rain bands,” she said.
Tillman also said there are no current plans to open shelters.
With dangerous rip currents and heavy surf expected, both she and Kilcullen urged people to stay out of the water at area beaches. They urged people living in low-lying area prone to flooding to monitor forecasts and be prepared to leave if necessary.
Kilcullen also urged people to avoid water-covered roadways and take alternate routes.
A flash flood watch, high surf and rip current advisories are in effect through the weekend for Alabama’s coastal counties.
At 10 a.m., the depression’s winds were near 35 mph and forecasters at the National Hurricane Center in Miami projected that winds could reach tropical-storm strength of 39 mph later today.
Jeff Garmon with the National Weather Service in Mobile said parts of coastal Alabama could get up to 15 inches of rain through Wednesday or Thursday, with some spots possibly seeing higher totals.
Forecasts from the Hurricane Center call for the system to move inland early Sunday as a tropical storm. The storm is expected to weaken gradually as it jogs northeast and moves north of Mobile through west-central Alabama, Garmon said.
Tides up to 3 feet above normal are predicted and breaking waves in the surf zone could increase from 4 to 6 feet, to 5 to 8 feet through the weekend, according to forecasters.