Tropical Storm Gordon strengthens, churns toward U.S. Gulf Coast

NEW ORLEANS, (Reuters) - Tropical Storm Gordon began lashing the U.S. Gulf Coast with high winds yesterday, strengthening as it swirled toward the coast carrying heavy rains and threatening to make landfall as a hurricane.

Gordon was forecast to come ashore near Pascagoula, Mississippi in the coming hours as a Category 1 hurricane on the five-step Saffir-Simpson scale.

It would be the first hurricane to make landfall in the continental United States this season. Hurricane and storm surge warnings were in effect for Pascagoula.

Though the Louisiana coast remained calm as of early Tuesday evening, Governor John Bel Edwards declared a state of emergency and companies cut 9 percent of U.S. Gulf of Mexico oil and gas production.

“I’m asking all residents to do their part in getting ready for this storm,” New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell said in a statement. “The city’s absolute No.1 priority is to ensure the safety of our residents.”

Tropical-storm force winds were already lashing the Alabama and western Florida panhandle coastlines and were predicted to reach hurricane force of at least 74 mph (119 kph) by the time storm makes landfall. Some areas still recovering from last year’s storms could see 12 inches (30 cm) of rain.

Beaches around Mobile, Alabama were being washed by storm-driven waves on Tuesday morning, said Stephen Miller, a meteorologist for the National Weather Service.