Tropical storm warning: Heavy rain, winds up to 60 mph in Columbus area

With Hurricane Irma continually shifting westward and now projected to move up the Gulf Coast side of the Florida peninsula, the storm forecast for the Columbus area is growing more serious.

The National Weather Service has now issued a tropical storm warning, a flash flood watch and a tropical cyclone statement for areas that included the Chattahoochee Valley.

Hurricane warnings — meaning winds of 74 mph or higher — also have been issued for southern portions of Georgia up to around Albany, Ga., to include Quitman and Randolph counties about 60 miles south of Columbus. Georgetown, the county seat of Quitman County, is just across the Chattahoochee River from Eufaula, Ala., while Cuthbert is the county seat of Randolph County.

The current forecast track of Irma’s core, which has topped out at a devastating Category 5 on its way to the U.S. coast, now takes it up the Florida peninsula into Georgia, then curving northwest just east of the Columbus area and Atlanta before moving into southern Tennessee.

With the dynamics of the hurricane’s movement changing constantly, the exact timing and location of Irma’s movement has been updated multiple times in recent days and that likely will continue.

Forecasts currently indicate rain bands and increasing wind will begin entering the Columbus area Sunday evening and into early Monday morning, with tropical storm conditions moving into the Chattahoochee Valley around midday Monday. Tropical storm winds, according to the Saffir-Simpson scale, are between 39 mph and 73 mph.

The latest forecast indicates tropical force winds out of the north-northeast will begin blowing through Columbus around lunchtime Monday, then push toward 55 mph by mid-afternoon and possibly into early Monday evening. There may be higher gusts up to 70 mph, forecasters have said. The current projected range for winds on Monday during the day and into the evening are between 40 mph and 60 mph.

With the rotation of the then-Tropical Storm Irma continuing through the day on Monday, winds are expected to change direction from the north-northeast to out of the north-northwest and then eventually out of the south-southwest as they settle down to a range of 20 mph to 30 mph.

There will be heavy rainfall at times as the storm and its “squalls” move through the area, the National Weather Service said. Accumulations, for now, are forecast to be between 3 to 5 inches Monday in the Columbus area, possibly higher totals as the rain bands move repeatedly over areas.

Aside from the Georgia counties of Muscogee, Harris and Chattahoochee, other area counties in the current tropical storm warning include Baldwin, Barrow, Bartow, Bibb, Bleckley, Carroll, Chattooga, Cherokee, Clarke, Cobb, Crawford, Crisp, DeKalb, Dodge, Dooly, Douglas, Emanuel, Floyd, Forsyth, Glascock, Gordon, Gwinnett, Haralson, Houston, Jackson, Jefferson, Johnson, Jones, Laurens, Macon, Madison, Marion, Monroe, Montgomery, Morgan, Newton, North Fulton, Oconee, Oglethorpe, Paulding, Peach, Pickens, Polk, Pulaski, Rockdale, Schley, South Fulton, Stewart, Sumter, Talbot, Taylor, Telfair, Toombs, Treutlen, Twiggs, Walton, Washington, Webster, Wheeler, Wilcox, Wilkes and Wilkinson.

Alabama counties currently under a tropical storm warning include Russell, Lee, Barbour, Blount, Bullock, Calhoun, Chambers, Cherokee, Clay, Cleburne, Coosa, Elmore, Etowah, Macon, Montgomery, Pike, Randolph, St. Clair, Talladega, and Tallapoosa, Bullock, Macon and Pike.

As for impact from the pending storms, the National Weather Service said tornadoes are less likely in central Alabama — which is west of the storm’s overall rotation — but there could be isolated twisters in north and central Georgia. Both tornadoes and high winds can damage homes, knock down trees, and knock out power and communication, the weather service said.

A Weather Channel graphic has indicated the possibility of “widespread power outages” throughout all of Georgia, eastern portions of Alabama, much of western South Carolina, and portions of southeast Tennessee, western North Carolina and the Florida Panhandle.

Here is a “situation overview” provided Saturday evening by the weather service for central Georgia:

“Hurricane Irma continues as a major hurricane, centered just north of the coast of Cuba. Official National Hurricane Center track has Irma starting its track northward and strengthening slightly before making landfall along the west coast of Florida. The storm will then pick up speed as it continues north into portions of south central Georgia as a weakening category one hurricane.

“As it moves into central Georgia, portions of the watch area can expect tropical storm force winds beginning late Sunday night. During the day Monday, the greatest impacts will be felt with winds increasing to 40 to 50 mph with gusts as high as 70 mph along and east of the center of the storm track.

“Because of the wet spring and early summer, the forecasted wind speeds will easily bring trees down across the area which will also lead to widespread power outages. Residents should be prepared in some cases to be without power for several days and stock up on supplies accordingly. Tropical storm force winds are expected to move out of the area late Monday night.”

Here is a “situation overview” provided Saturday evening by the weather service for central Alabama:

“Irma is expected to have noticable impacts across the eastern half of central Alabama on Monday into Monday night. Winds of 30 to 40 mph may begin as early as the pre dawn hours Monday in the southeast counties. Conditions will worsen during the afternoon and evening on Monday as strong winds spread northward with gusts possibly reaching 60 mph.

“Scattered tree and power line damage is possible along with power outages. Some minor structural damage is also possible. The greatest wind gusts and impacts are expected to be generally along and east of a line from Oneonta to Sylacauga to Montgomery to Troy. Conditions will gradually improve on Tuesday as Irma continues to move northward.”

Stay tuned to ledger-enquirer.com for more storm updates.

This story was originally published September 9, 2017 at 9:17 PM with the headline "Tropical storm warning: Heavy rain, winds up to 60 mph in Columbus area."