A new U.S. Geological Survey coastal change forecast predicts sandy beaches in Louisiana and Mississippi may be heavily damaged by Zeta, which is expected to make landfall Oct. 28 as a hurricane. Sandy beaches in Texas, Alabama and Florida may see moderate to minor damage.
The Oct. 27 forecast will be updated whenever the National Hurricane Center’s surge forecasts for Zeta change. The most current forecast is always available on the USGS Coastal Change Hazards Portal.
The USGS coastal change forecast can help emergency management officials decide which areas to evacuate, where and when to close coastal roads and where to position clean-up equipment in advance of the storm.
Louisiana and Mississippi are expected to bear the brunt of the storm’s strong waves and surge, with 12% of both states’ sandy beaches forecast to be inundated or continuously covered by ocean water. This is the most severe type of storm effect on coastal beaches, with flooding behind the dunes that may impact coastal communities. The areas currently projected to be inundated are from Marsh Island, Louisiana, to Biloxi, Mississippi. Texas, Alabama and Florida are not projected to have beaches inundated by Hurricane Zeta.
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Image via USGS.