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CNN Live Today
Isidore Approaching Gulf Coast
Aired September 25, 2002 - 10:01 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Up first this hour on CNN, Isidore has lost quite a bit of muscle but not all the menace. Forecasters are saying now the tropical storm may not regain hurricane strength before coming ashore after all; however, it could still deliver devastating amounts of rain to the Gulf Coast. Now that's a considerable threat to some low-lying coastal areas like New Orleans.
And that is where our Jeff Flock -- our, as I said, our wet Flock is right now. Let's go check in him with, oh gosh, Jeff. Jeff, you look miserable. How are things looking down there?
JEFF FLOCK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, you know it's lost its punch, but it still has the capability of making people somewhat miserable, absolutely correct. A lot of rainfall, and as you can tell, not a -- not a tremendous amount of wind, but a lot of rain at this hour. And that is the big concern that they're going to get enough rain to really cause them some problems here.
We're out alongside, as you hear the whistles of the tugboats and the shipping traffic off here, this is the Mississippi River. New Orleans is a town that is surrounded by water. And if Syke (ph) is able to go around to your left to maybe you can -- Syke, I don't know if you're able to see off this way, that's the French Quarter off there to the left and on beyond that is like Pontchartrain. So it's a city below sea level. So when they talk about getting a lot of water, this is something that gives folks here a lot of concern.
The pump system that protects New Orleans is capable of pumping out about a half an inch an hour. So we'll see if it gets tested. It's been raining all day yesterday. It has been raining since we've been standing out here this morning and tomorrow as well. So I guess we'll see.
Sorry for the water on the pictures there. There you go.
HARRIS: That's all right. That kind of thing happens in these conditions.
Have you had a chance to talk to too many people out there, Jeff? Are there many folks out there on the water at all or doing crazy things?
Thanks for that.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
HARRIS: That makes it a lot clearer for us. Thank you very much.
FLOCK: These -- well I don't know how clear it is, but yes, a lot of people that you know have experience with hurricanes in New Orleans say they're not a whole lot worried about this. They evacuated the Grand Isle, which is the Barrier Island to the south. But if it stays, you know, present level of intensity, really it's going to be a rain event primarily. So not a lot of people too upset at the moment.
HARRIS: All right, let's hope it stays that way. Jeff Flock, stay dry, if you can, in between these live shots.
FLOCK: OK.
HARRIS: We'll check back with you later on. Jeff Flock live in New Orleans.
KAGAN: You said he looks miserable, I think he looks in hog heaven. People like him and John Zarrella and Gary Tuchman, they live for stuff like that.
HARRIS: Yes, that is true. That is true.
KAGAN: And Orelon Sidney, but she's nice and dry inside.
HARRIS: (UNINTELLIGIBLE) who?
ORELON SIDNEY, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes, they won't send me out to cover those things, you know. I'm a little bit too...
HARRIS: And you're pretty happy about that too, aren't you?
SIDNEY: Well, you know I'd love to but I'm a little bit too small, you know.
KAGAN: Yes, you'll blow away.
SIDNEY: When winds get up to 60 miles, there she goes.
Take a look at what's happening right now, this is some good news, folks. It does not look like Isidore is going to retain or maintain or regain, let's say, hurricane intensity. You can notice the center is here. Look at all the deep thunderstorms. Those are all off to the east. And when you get that sort of asymmetrical situation with the thunderstorms, you just don't manage to get things building up very fast at all. That's excellent news. Of course this went in as a category three, borderline category four, storm across the Yucatan over the weekend. Not going to have to worry about that now. That's not going to be a big problem.
In case you are tracking the storm though, however, I want to give you the very latest, 305 miles now south of New Orleans. We still have a hurricane watch in effect from Cameron out to Pascagoula. Winds are 60 miles an hour, moving to the north at about 13 miles an hour, expected to go in with the wind speed maybe around 65 miles an hour. There's some showers and thunderstorms extending from the Florida Panhandle back through Mobile Bay and all the way out to New Orleans. Tornado watch is in effect now until 1:00 p.m. from New Orleans out to about Apalachicola. That could be the thing to watch, including the heavy rain. More on that later -- Leon, Daryn.
HARRIS: All right, thanks, Orelon.
SIDNEY: You're welcome.
KAGAN: Now I know what to get Orelon for Christmas, some cement rain boots. Anchor her down.
HARRIS: There you go, that might be what she needs too.
KAGAN: Very good. Thank you, Orelon.
HARRIS: All right -- Orelon.
SIDNEY: You're welcome.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired September 25, 2002 - 10:01 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Up first this hour on CNN, Isidore has lost quite a bit of muscle but not all the menace. Forecasters are saying now the tropical storm may not regain hurricane strength before coming ashore after all; however, it could still deliver devastating amounts of rain to the Gulf Coast. Now that's a considerable threat to some low-lying coastal areas like New Orleans.
And that is where our Jeff Flock -- our, as I said, our wet Flock is right now. Let's go check in him with, oh gosh, Jeff. Jeff, you look miserable. How are things looking down there?
JEFF FLOCK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, you know it's lost its punch, but it still has the capability of making people somewhat miserable, absolutely correct. A lot of rainfall, and as you can tell, not a -- not a tremendous amount of wind, but a lot of rain at this hour. And that is the big concern that they're going to get enough rain to really cause them some problems here.
We're out alongside, as you hear the whistles of the tugboats and the shipping traffic off here, this is the Mississippi River. New Orleans is a town that is surrounded by water. And if Syke (ph) is able to go around to your left to maybe you can -- Syke, I don't know if you're able to see off this way, that's the French Quarter off there to the left and on beyond that is like Pontchartrain. So it's a city below sea level. So when they talk about getting a lot of water, this is something that gives folks here a lot of concern.
The pump system that protects New Orleans is capable of pumping out about a half an inch an hour. So we'll see if it gets tested. It's been raining all day yesterday. It has been raining since we've been standing out here this morning and tomorrow as well. So I guess we'll see.
Sorry for the water on the pictures there. There you go.
HARRIS: That's all right. That kind of thing happens in these conditions.
Have you had a chance to talk to too many people out there, Jeff? Are there many folks out there on the water at all or doing crazy things?
Thanks for that.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: (UNINTELLIGIBLE).
HARRIS: That makes it a lot clearer for us. Thank you very much.
FLOCK: These -- well I don't know how clear it is, but yes, a lot of people that you know have experience with hurricanes in New Orleans say they're not a whole lot worried about this. They evacuated the Grand Isle, which is the Barrier Island to the south. But if it stays, you know, present level of intensity, really it's going to be a rain event primarily. So not a lot of people too upset at the moment.
HARRIS: All right, let's hope it stays that way. Jeff Flock, stay dry, if you can, in between these live shots.
FLOCK: OK.
HARRIS: We'll check back with you later on. Jeff Flock live in New Orleans.
KAGAN: You said he looks miserable, I think he looks in hog heaven. People like him and John Zarrella and Gary Tuchman, they live for stuff like that.
HARRIS: Yes, that is true. That is true.
KAGAN: And Orelon Sidney, but she's nice and dry inside.
HARRIS: (UNINTELLIGIBLE) who?
ORELON SIDNEY, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes, they won't send me out to cover those things, you know. I'm a little bit too...
HARRIS: And you're pretty happy about that too, aren't you?
SIDNEY: Well, you know I'd love to but I'm a little bit too small, you know.
KAGAN: Yes, you'll blow away.
SIDNEY: When winds get up to 60 miles, there she goes.
Take a look at what's happening right now, this is some good news, folks. It does not look like Isidore is going to retain or maintain or regain, let's say, hurricane intensity. You can notice the center is here. Look at all the deep thunderstorms. Those are all off to the east. And when you get that sort of asymmetrical situation with the thunderstorms, you just don't manage to get things building up very fast at all. That's excellent news. Of course this went in as a category three, borderline category four, storm across the Yucatan over the weekend. Not going to have to worry about that now. That's not going to be a big problem.
In case you are tracking the storm though, however, I want to give you the very latest, 305 miles now south of New Orleans. We still have a hurricane watch in effect from Cameron out to Pascagoula. Winds are 60 miles an hour, moving to the north at about 13 miles an hour, expected to go in with the wind speed maybe around 65 miles an hour. There's some showers and thunderstorms extending from the Florida Panhandle back through Mobile Bay and all the way out to New Orleans. Tornado watch is in effect now until 1:00 p.m. from New Orleans out to about Apalachicola. That could be the thing to watch, including the heavy rain. More on that later -- Leon, Daryn.
HARRIS: All right, thanks, Orelon.
SIDNEY: You're welcome.
KAGAN: Now I know what to get Orelon for Christmas, some cement rain boots. Anchor her down.
HARRIS: There you go, that might be what she needs too.
KAGAN: Very good. Thank you, Orelon.
HARRIS: All right -- Orelon.
SIDNEY: You're welcome.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
