Gulf Coast awaits flooding from Tropical Storm Cristobal

By Syed Sajid Aziz in USA
(Pakistan News & Features Services)

The latest forecast track has Tropical Storm Cristobal, the third named storm of what is expected to be an active hurricane season, making landfall sometime during afternoon or early evening on June 7.

Cristobal has reported to have sustained winds of 50 mph and it was expected to continue to strengthen as it tracked north through the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico on June 6. 

As for Cristobal's landfall location, several models anticipated it to fall somewhere between Marsh Island and Slidell, Louisiana but other locations could also be impacted. 

"The highest winds, greatest storm surge and heaviest rain may occur east of where Cristobal makes landfall, so not only is the Louisiana coast at risk, but also Mississippi, Alabama and well into the Florida Panhandle," CNN reported. 

According to the Jefferson Parish officials, voluntary evacuation orders were in place for the towns of Jean Lafitte, Lower Lafitte, Crown Point and Barataria in the New Orleans area as the residents were advised to bring vehicles, boats and campers to higher ground as the storm was expected to bring heavy rainfall.