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CNN Saturday Morning News
Hurricane Specialist Discusses Isidore
Aired September 21, 2002 - 07:19 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.
JACQUI JERAS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: We want to get the latest now from the National Hurricane Center, get a better idea of where this is going to be going, with Miles Lawrence, and he is from the National Hurricane Center.
And Miles, are you with us this morning?
MILES LAWRENCE, NOAA HURRICANE SPECIALIST: Yes, I am. Good morning.
JERAS: Good morning.
What kind of strengthening are we expecting, if any, today with Isidore?
LAWRENCE: We think that Isidore could get a lot stronger than it is right now. And as you mentioned, the winds are 100 miles an hour. Conditions seem very favorable for further strengthening, and an aircraft that's out there now is giving us some information that suggests that the strengthening process has begun.
I might also mention that the last few fixes from the aircraft indicate that the storm is moving on a course south of due west, and that means that it definitely is going to impact the Yucatan Peninsula in the next day or so.
JERAS: All right. What about U.S. interests in the Gulf of Mexico? Are we expecting any kind of a northerly turn later on in the forecast period?
LAWRENCE: Well, our forecast only goes out to three days. And during that time, it's going to stay down in the southern Gulf of Mexico. But after that, everybody in the -- around the Gulf of Mexico better pay attention to it after three days from now.
JERAS: After three days. So we have a little bit of time. And what should people be doing now to prepare for that?
LAWRENCE: Well, it's the same advice that we give everyone along the hurricane coastline. You need to be prepared for -- every hurricane season for the event of a hurricane. We don't want people rushing to the stores and loading up on goods at this moment. But you really need a plan in place in case this dangerous hurricane does head north after a while.
JERAS: Right. This looks like it's going to be the first major hurricane of this season, and it does have the potential, do you think, for it to stay very strong, to be a major hurricane if it does move northward across the U.S.?
LAWRENCE: We think it does have that potential, yes, indeed.
JERAS: All right. We'll continue to keep an eye on it. Thank you very much, Miles Lawrence from the National Hurricane Center. Thanks for being with us.
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 21, 2002 - 07:19 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
JACQUI JERAS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: We want to get the latest now from the National Hurricane Center, get a better idea of where this is going to be going, with Miles Lawrence, and he is from the National Hurricane Center.
And Miles, are you with us this morning?
MILES LAWRENCE, NOAA HURRICANE SPECIALIST: Yes, I am. Good morning.
JERAS: Good morning.
What kind of strengthening are we expecting, if any, today with Isidore?
LAWRENCE: We think that Isidore could get a lot stronger than it is right now. And as you mentioned, the winds are 100 miles an hour. Conditions seem very favorable for further strengthening, and an aircraft that's out there now is giving us some information that suggests that the strengthening process has begun.
I might also mention that the last few fixes from the aircraft indicate that the storm is moving on a course south of due west, and that means that it definitely is going to impact the Yucatan Peninsula in the next day or so.
JERAS: All right. What about U.S. interests in the Gulf of Mexico? Are we expecting any kind of a northerly turn later on in the forecast period?
LAWRENCE: Well, our forecast only goes out to three days. And during that time, it's going to stay down in the southern Gulf of Mexico. But after that, everybody in the -- around the Gulf of Mexico better pay attention to it after three days from now.
JERAS: After three days. So we have a little bit of time. And what should people be doing now to prepare for that?
LAWRENCE: Well, it's the same advice that we give everyone along the hurricane coastline. You need to be prepared for -- every hurricane season for the event of a hurricane. We don't want people rushing to the stores and loading up on goods at this moment. But you really need a plan in place in case this dangerous hurricane does head north after a while.
JERAS: Right. This looks like it's going to be the first major hurricane of this season, and it does have the potential, do you think, for it to stay very strong, to be a major hurricane if it does move northward across the U.S.?
LAWRENCE: We think it does have that potential, yes, indeed.
JERAS: All right. We'll continue to keep an eye on it. Thank you very much, Miles Lawrence from the National Hurricane Center. Thanks for being with us.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
