Gulf Coast: State-by-State Preparations

(Evacuation Maps: Louisiana | Mississippi | Alabama)

Story by Weather.com

Louisiana

A hurricane warning continues early Tuesday for New Orleans, while hurricane watches remained in effect for many coastal Louisiana parishes, especially those adjacent to Lake Pontchartrain.

"Isaac has now formed into a hurricane.  We are officially in the fight. And the city of New Orleans is on the front lines," said Mitch Landrieu, Mayor of New Orleans.

Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal said they are ready for recovery efforts after the storm, and plan is to have 40 pods available for Southeast La., another 20 pods for North La.  Each of those pods can each feed 5,000 people. They are already positioning those pods and are preparing to ramp up additional pods as necessary.

Baton Rouge Parish

• Louisiana State University closed Tuesday and Wednesday.
• All East Baton Rouge Parish public schools closed Tuesday and Wednesday.
• All Zachary schools closed Tuesday and Wednesday.
• The Child Development Cooperative and Parkview Baptist School closed Tuesday and Wednesday.
• All State Offices in East Baton Rouge Parish closed on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Jefferson Parish

• Under a state of emergency, evacuation orders issued in Crown Point, Barataria, Grand Isle and Lafitte.
• Head Start classes canceled.

Orleans Parish

• Under a state of emergency.
• As of 2am Tuesday, Lakeshore Drive is closed to the public.
• Libraries closed through Tuesday. 
• Tulane University and Loyola University classes canceled through Wednesday.
• World War II Museum closed Monday and plans to reopen Thursday.

Plaquemines Parish

• Under a state of emergency.
• Mandatory evacuation for the east bank in in place as of noon Monday. A shelter has been set up.
• Officials have ordered a dusk to dawn curfew for the entire parish.

St. Bernard Parish

• Mandatory evacuations are in place.
• Schools closed Tuesday and Wednesday.
• Oyster Harvest areas 1-28 will be closed as of sunset Tuesday.

St. Charles Parish

• Under a state of emergenc
• Mandatory evacuations are in place.

St. Tammany Parish

• Voluntary evacuations issued for southern areas.

Terrebonne Parish

• Terrebonne Parish officials ordered evacuation Monday for parts of the parish prone to coastal flooding. Monday's mandatory evacuation affected at most 20,000 of the parish's 113,000 residents, Parish President Michel Claudet said.
• Shelters opened Monday at the Houma Municipal Auditorium and at the West Houma Gym for animals belonging to people staying at the auditorium.

Washington Parish

• Bogalusa City Public Schools closed Tuesday through Thursday.

Transportation 

• All flights into and out of New Orleans canceled for Tuesday.
• Amtrak canceled train service Tuesday and Wednesday in Louisiana (the Crescent and Sunset Limited routes).
• The U.S. Coast Guard plans to close maritime access to  navigable channels in the Greater New Orleans area and will prohibit unapproved mooring in the New Orleans area navigation canals within the levee system.
• Road Closures
  • Airline Highway is closed at the St. Charles Parish/Jefferson Parish line due to sandbagging
  • Florida Avenue Bridge is closed for the duration of the storm
  • Highway 45 near the Jean Lafitte National Park in St. Bernard Parish closed due to floodgate closing
  • Highway 90 is closed at the St. Charles Parish/Jefferson Parish line due to sandbagging
  • LA-23 is closed to southbound traffic below Oakville in Plaquemines Parish closed due to floodgate closing
  • LA-23 will close to northbound traffic in Plaqumines Parish at 6 a.m. Tuesday due to floodgate closing
  • LA-39 at the Caenavaron Canal in Plaquemines Parish closed due to floodgate closing
  • LA-39 at the Plaquemines Parish/St. Bernard Parish line closed due to floodgate closing
  • LA-46 at Verrett Road in St. Bernard Parish closed due to floodgate closing
  • LA-300 at Verrett Road in St. Bernard Parish closed due to floodgate closing
  • Lakeshore Drive is closed

Sports

• New Orleans Saints practice and meetings were canceled Monday to allow the NFL team's players to evacuate their families. The contingency plan is to practice in Nashville on Tuesday.
• Louisiana State University closed Tuesday and Wednesday, though the season-opening football game is still set for Saturday at 6 p.m.

Oil Rigs

• 12 rigs evacuated
• 5 monitoring and may evacuate

(MORE: Full List of Louisiana Shelters, Closures and Response to Isaac)

Mississippi

The Mississippi Emergency Management Agency (MEMA) urged Mississippi residents Monday to prepare for Isaac as if the storm will impact them directly. The entire state of Mississippi is under a state of emergency, and hurricane warnings were issued for Gulfport and Biloxi, Miss.

"Even a tropical storm or hurricane making landfall in the Florida Panhandle or Alabama coast could have a significant impact on our state," said MEMA Director Robert Latham. Residents are urged to have a fully stocked emergency supply kit that can support them for at least three days.

Harrison County

• The Beau Rivage Hotel in Biloxi will close at 8a.m. Gaming will remain open until further notice.
• A mandatory evacuation has been ordered for low-lying areas.
• A mandatory curfew is in effect beginning at 7p.m. Tuesday.  No one will be allowed on county or city roads.

Forrest County

• Forrest County community shelter opened Monday at 946 Sullivan Road in Hattiesburg.

Hancock County
Two general population emergency shelters opened Monday in Hancock County:

• Kiln Shelter at 18320 Highway 43
• Dedeaux Shelter at 11328 Road 350 off Standard Dedeaux Road

At both shelters, evacuees were asked to bring bedding, toiletries, medicines, hygiene and other necessities. 
Harrison County

• State of emergency declared for Harrison County, all county government offices closed Tuesday and Wednesday.

Jackson County
Local state of emergency declared.  Shelters open:

• St. Martin High School
• Vancleave High School
• East Central High School
• East Central Community Center (special needs shelter)

Lauderdale County

• Shelters opened at Northpark Church and North Crest Baptist Church in Meridian.

(MORE: Full List of Mississippi Shelters)

Alabama

Gov. Robert Bentley declared a statewide state of emergency Sunday and issued a mandatory evacuation order ahead of Isaac's landfall along the Gulf Coast. Bentley urged residents to take preparations now, adding that his biggest concern is the potential tidal surge in Mobile Bay around Baldwin County.

A hurricane warning was in effect late Monday for Mobile, Ala., where Tuesday's flights were canceled at Mobile Regional Airport.

Baldwin County

• Zone 1 under a mandatory evacuation order, zone 2 is modified to include only low-lying, flood prone areas or mobile/manufactured homes.
• Gulf Shores officials declared a state of emergency and issued a voluntary evacuation for all tourists and visitors.
• Baldwin County public schools closed Tuesday and Wednesday.
• Elections scheduled this week in Baldwin County postponed.

Mobile County

• Zone 1 under mandatory evacuation order including Dolphin Island and other low-lying flood prone areas.  Zone 2 evacuations have been modified to only include low-lying areas that are flood prone.
• Schools in Mobile counties closed through Wednesday.

(MORE: Full List of Baldwin County Shelters | Mobile County Shelters)