Hurricane Zeta made landfall in Louisiana shortly after 5:00 p.m. ET, after it strengthened this afternoon after its passage through the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico reaching category 2,
with maximum sustained winds of up to 110 miles per hour
, according to the latest bulletin from the National Hurricane Center (NHC).
It is the fifth storm to hit that state so far this season, and the second hurricane this month.
This time, it is anticipated that the New Orleans area may be directly affected.
Zeta currently has maximum sustained winds of 110 miles per hour (177 km per hour), that is, it is considered a
category 2 hurricane.
At the moment it is moving at 20 miles per hour (28 km / h).
[Can you stop a hurricane with an atomic bomb? And with an iceberg? A storm is coming and there are crazy ideas to stop it]
Portions of the Gulf of Mexico coast, between Mississippi and Florida, are already suffering from the deterioration of the storm, with storm surges, winds and heavy rains in the next few hours now that Zeta has made landfall, warns NHC.
After hitting the Yucatan Peninsula on Tuesday, where it arrived with the force of a hurricane before weakening into a tropical storm, Zeta continued towards the US coast while strengthening in the open waters of the Gulf of Mexico.
The predicted point of arrival in Louisiana is located further east of the area hit by
Laura and Delta
, the first two hurricanes
to hit
this southern United States this year - a hurricane watch is active for the area ranging from Morgan City, Louisiana, to the Mississippi-Alabama border.
[Dos and don'ts during and after a hurricane]
Between this Wednesday night and Thursday, the meteorological phenomenon is expected to move in that direction, the NHC adds.
This was the arrival of Hurricane Laura in Louisiana
Aug. 27, 202001: 01
Although Zeta appears less powerful than other recent hurricanes, authorities are on high alert.
Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards asked President Donald Trump for a disaster zone declaration before the storm hit.
Trump declared a state of emergency on Tuesday night.
Meanwhile, the state is trying to get back on its feet
after being hit this year
by two tropical storms and two hurricanes
.
Laura is credited with at least 27 deaths after she passed through that area in August.
Delta exacerbated Laura's damage in the same area weeks later.
Alabama Governor Kay Ivey and Biloxi, Mississippi Mayor Andrew “FoFo” Gilich declared emergencies.
"There is no doubt that we have seen a lot this year, with COVID and so many threats and so many storms," Gilich said in a press release, "but this storm shows that we have not seen everything yet."
The storm is expected to cause a
potentially deadly
storm surge
over part of the Gulf Coast late Wednesday night,
dangerous winds
and carry
heavy rain
as it progresses.
They say global warming is causing stronger hurricanes
Sept.
4, 201902: 52
Zeta is the 11th hurricane of the Atlantic season and the 27th named storm. An average season has six hurricanes and 12 named storms.
This year, the NHC had to turn to the Greek alphabet after running out of assigned names.
The extraordinarily busy hurricane season has drawn attention to
the role of climate change
, which scientists say is driving wetter, stronger and more destructive storms.
With information from AP and The Weather Channel.