A winter storm developing across the South on Tuesday will bring the risk of severe storms to over 15 million people living along the Gulf Coast, including in Houston, New Orleans and Mobile, Ala.
Forecasters with the National Weather Service’s Storm Prediction Center warned people in the region early Tuesday to anticipate potentially damaging winds and strong tornadoes.
The threat will begin in Texas around the middle of the day and move east along the Gulf Coast through the evening.
Gov. Greg Abbott of Texas said he had directed the Texas Division of Emergency Management to prepare the state’s response resources, adding that the authorities at every level were at the ready. At least a dozen flights were canceled and six others were delayed at George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston, according to FlightAware, a flight-tracking company.
In Louisiana, the governor’s Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness tweeted messages about storm safety. “We face another severe weather threat this week,” the agency said, urging residents to remain alert. The Mississippi Emergency Management Agency sent similar messages about storm preparation.
The risk for severe weather will move to the eastern Gulf Coast and the Atlantic Coast on Wednesday into Thursday. Cites along the East Coast from Norfolk, Va., to Jacksonville, Fla., could see tornadoes later this week.
Large hail is also a risk as these storms push through.
New Orleans was hit by a deadly tornado last month as a series of storms swept the South. And last March, two tornadoes touched down in the area around the city, killing at least one person and leaving a path of destruction in their wake.
Derrick Bryson Taylor contributed reporting.