Tropical Storm Karen Almost Certain To Be Upgraded To Hurricane

It is that time of year again. Hurricane season is upon us and hurricane Karen is on its way to the United States Gulf Coast. A watch has been put into effect for parts of coast as this storm is suspected to stretch from Grand Isle, Louisiana, east to Indian Pass, Florida. Early detection systems are in place and this storm has been tracked for days now as residents prepare for the storm.

An added element to this storm is that the Federal Emergency Management Agency is recalling some of the workers that had been furloughed during the government shutdown that happened earlier this week. It is important that these organizations and emergency response workers are made available for the people that will be effected by the storm. An important factor is the United States hazard mitigation efforts of these people that aid in the recovery after a big storm hits. 

The storm has made it past portions of Central America that saw it dump heavy rainfall over the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico and also in western Cuba. As it stands now, the Gulf Coast is just hours away from the storm's impact which is expected to make landfall late Saturday night or early Sunday morning. I will continue to update as the storm reaches the US.

Sources:

http://www.usatoday.com/story/weather/2013/10/04/tropical-storm-karen-gulf-coast/2921343/

http://www.cnn.com/2013/10/03/world/americas/tropical-storm-karen/index.html?hpt=us_c2