Hurricane Isaias closes in on US Gulf Coast

Hurricane Isaias is set to make landfall along the Alabama and Florida coasts on Friday night in the US.

It is being classed as a category three - the third highest - and is expected to result in a "life-threatening" storm surge, "extremely dangerous and damaging" winds, flooding and possibly tornadoes.

Residents along the US Gulf Coast have been boarding up windows, laying sandbags and getting last-minute supplies in preparation for the storm, which is the first in an unusually quiet hurricane season.

The last one to hit the eastern US was Milton, which struck the Gulf Coast of Florida in 2024.

Isaias is due to come ashore between Mobile Bay on the Alabama coast and the city of Destin in the Florida Panhandle - an area known for white sandy beaches, holiday homes and waterfront bars.

The National Hurricane Centre said a "life-threatening" storm surge, which could be 1.8m-2.7m (6ft-9ft), was expected from the mouth of the Mississippi River to Suwannee in Florida.

And "extremely dangerous" hurricane-force winds were anticipated over parts of the Florida Panhandle, southern Alabama and southern Mississippi, where a hurricane warning is in effect.

On Friday morning, it packed 120mph (193kph) sustained winds and was picking up speed.

"Damaging wind gusts were likely over a large portion of the southeastern US from western and northern Georgia westward over much of central and northern Alabama, southern middle Tennessee and Mississippi," the centre said.

It added: "Isaias will bring areas of heavy rainfall to the central US Gulf coast and much of the southeast throughout the weekend."

Alabama governor Kay Ivey has ordered non-residents to evacuate Gulf Shores, Orange Beach and Dauphin Island.

And Florida governor Ron DeSantis has warned people to expect floods, wind damage, power outages and fuel shortages.

"When the water's rising and things are happening, it's a very, very difficult conundrum and you do not want to be caught in that," he said.

But Anne Petzold, who lives with her husband in the Florida beach community of Gulf Breeze, said they and all of their neighbours plan to ride out the storm.

The couple have put up hurricane shutters, removed anything in their yard that could become a projectile and have two generators ready if they lose power.

"Everybody does what they can do, everybody asks if they need help - they ask for help, they offer help. All good," she said. "It's just another adventure."

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Once it comes ashore, Isaias is expected to weaken until it is downgraded to a tropical storm by Saturday afternoon.

But heavy rain is still forecast as it moves inland, with 10-20cm (4-8in) or more expected through the weekend.

(c) Sky News 2026: Hurricane Isaias closes in on US Gulf Coast