This is turning out to be a fairly active season for the development of tropical storms below the Gulf Coast. The Caribbean is bracing for yet another onslaught of Mother Nature in the form of Gustav. While the residents of Florida are still reeling from the after affects of tropical storm Fay those further south on the islands of Jamaica, Cuba, and others, are already facing another drenching barely two weeks after Fay. Thus far Gustav has not developed into a hurricane, but many who live along the Gulf coast are nervously waiting to see how strong he will get.
From the path that Gustav seems to be taking at the present time, Florida will hopefully be spared another attack of drenching rain and high winds. It appears that the direction Gustav will be heading once it approaches the states is more in the direction of the Texas coastline, but those in Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana, will be watching this new storm very closely.
The last thing that these states need is more destructive weather. The residents who live in the southern portions of these areas are understandably nervous every time a new storm approaches because of the severity of hurricane Katrina several years ago. Rebuilding and recovery is still going on in these regions from that fatal hurricane. Although they realize they live in hurricane prone areas, they need to have time to recover from one to the next.
What will be disastrous at this point is if tropical storm Gustav strays from his predicted path and heads towards the southern tip of Florida again. It will be horrible for Floridians to have to suffer another direct hit while they are still dealing with flooded areas left behind by Fay. Many schools and businesses are just now reopening and some roads and bridges are still closed. To have Gustav to come ashore there in as soon as four or five days would be devastating for them.
This is what is so tricky about tropical storms. The wondering about whether or not they will turn into a full blown hurricane or not and then the worry about exactly when and where they will make landfall. These are things that can only be predicted more accurately as the storm approaches. The end result of when, where, and how severe a storm will be has no way of being controlled, but people do have the ability to know at least a little beforehand if it is going to hit their area and hopefully have a little time to make preparations.
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