Hurricane Isaias: Residents board up windows and National Guard troops deploy as storm nears US Gulf Coast

Isaias is the first hurricane of the Atlantic season and was expected to usher in dangerous conditions when it makes landfall late Friday. Isaias is expected to usher in dangerous conditions in the Florida Panhandle, southern Alabama and southern Mississippi when it makes landfall late Friday. MIAMI (AP) — Residents boarded up windows and stacked sandbags Thursday while thousands of National Guard soldiers were deploying in anticipation of Hurricane Isaias, which packed swift winds and threatened to bring a storm surge with devastating floods to the U.S.

Gulf Coast.Isaias is the first hurricane of the Atlantic season and was expected to usher in dangerous conditions in the Florida Panhandle, southern Alabama and southern Mississippi when it makes landfall late Friday. Heavy rain and flooding were possible into the weekend as far north as Tennessee and North Carolina.The Category 2 hurricane is most likely to strike along the Alabama-Florida state line and bring life-threatening storm surge across Pensacola Bay, according to the National Weather Service in Mobile, Alabama. But there’s a small chance it could hit further west and have a major impact on Mobile, or further east and have a strong effect on the Florida cities of Pensacola and Destin.Meanwhile, Hurricane Simon, which formed as a tropical storm on Wednesday off of Mexico and became a hurricane late Thursday, was forecast to strengthen into a Category 4 hurricane.Isaias had maximum sustained winds of 105 mph (165 kph), according to the hurricane center.

It was headed north-northeast at 14 mph (22 kph) and was centered about 230 miles (370 kilometers) south of the mouth of the Mississippi River.A hurricane warning was in effect from Ocean Springs, Mississippi, to the Bay-Gulf County line in Florida, the hurricane center said. A storm surge warning was in effect from the mouth of the Mississippi to the Suwannee River.Preparations underwayCoastal communities moved quickly to prepare Thursday, as Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey ordered non-residents to immediately evacuate Gulf Shores, Orange Beach and Dauphin Island.

Videos on social media showed traffic at a standstill on a highway leading out of Gulf Shores, where double-red beach flags signaled water access was closed.At least four Florida school districts canceled late-week classes, while several counties announced mandatory evacuations for some coastal areas. The governors of Florida and Alabama declared states of emergency for dozens of counties, with Florida’s Ron DeSantis saying about 5,000 National Guard troops were expected to mobilize by Friday.On Dauphin Island, a 15-mile (24-kilometer) barrier island off the Alabama coast, officials encou…