By Brad Brooks
Oct 8 (Reuters) – Hurricane Isaias strengthened on Thursday as it barreled toward the US Gulf Coast, prompting mandatory evacuations in parts of Florida and emergency declarations in Alabama as forecasters warned of life-threatening storm surges, tornadoes and flooding.
Isaias has already disrupted oil and gas production in the Gulf of Mexico, forcing energy companies to evacuate offshore platforms and shut down operations.
The first Atlantic hurricane of the 2026 season was packing maximum sustained winds of 85 mph (140 kph) early on Thursday, the US National Hurricane Center said. Isaias was forecast to strengthen to near Category 3 intensity, with sustained winds reaching 110 mph (175 kph) on Friday before reaching the northern Gulf Coast late Friday or early Saturday.
“We are expecting Isaias to be a dangerous hurricane when it makes landfall,” NHC director Michael Brennan said in a Thursday morning briefing. “Today is the day to prepare and get ready.”
Isaias nearly tied the record for the latest first Atlantic hurricane with one that hit on October 8, 1905. The strong El Nino weather pattern this year has suppressed Atlantic hurricane development by increasing vertical wind shear, which disrupts the formation of strengthening tropical storms.
The hurricane was moving east-northeast at 10 mph (17 kph), about 380 miles (610 km) south of the mouth of the Mississippi River at 7 a.m. US Central time, the NHC said.
IMPACTS ON OIL, GAS
Isaias is expected to pass through areas with significant offshore oil and gas production, along with onshore refining facilities, which could pressure inventories and already-high prices at the pump.
US energy companies such as Shell (SHEL.L) and Chevron (CVX.N) said they were curtailing offshore operations at their Gulf platforms.
US Gulf of Mexico oil and gas producers had shut in about 25.08% of current oil production and 16.37% of current natural gas production as of Wednesday, according to the Marine Minerals Administration.
WARNINGS, STORM SURGE
Hurricane warnings stretched from coastal Mississippi through Alabama to the Florida panhandle, while tropical-storm and storm-surge warnings extended into southeastern Louisiana, the NHC said.
Forecasters warned that storm surges could reach 5 to 7 feet (1.5 to 2.1 meters) above sea level in the hardest-hit coastal areas, with rainfall of 3 to 7 inches (8 to 18 cm) and isolated totals of 10 inches (25 cm).
The hurricane was forecast to reach sustained winds of around 110 mph (175 kph) early Friday before weakening somewhat as it approached land. Increasing vertical wind shear, which can disrupt a hurricane’s circulation, was expected to limit its strength near landfall, though forecasters warned it would remain dangerous.
EVACUATIONS ORDERED
In Florida, officials ordered mandatory evacuations beginning at noon local time on Thursday for coastal areas of Okaloosa County.
The county urged tourists to leave the area and announced plans to close three airports Thursday evening. Governor Ron DeSantis declared a state of emergency in 25 Florida counties earlier in the week.
Alabama Governor Kay Ivey declared a state of emergency covering 40 counties, while officials on Dauphin Island issued an evacuation notice for the western portion of the barrier island beginning Thursday evening.
Baldwin County, Alabama, encouraged residents of low-lying coastal areas to evacuate voluntarily and prepared emergency shelters.
In Mississippi, Jackson County and the city of Gautier declared local emergencies as coastal communities prepared for flooding and power outages.
(Reporting by Brad Brooks in Colorado; Editing by Aurora Ellis)
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