ABC NewsBy MAX GOLEMBO, EMILY SHAPIRO, MELISSA GRIFFIN, ABC News
(NEW YORK) — Quick-moving Hurricane Delta has made landfall in Louisiana as a Category 2 hurricane.
The storm made landfall around 6 p.m. local time near Creole, Louisiana, with maximum sustained winds of 100 mph. It is expected to quickly weaken as it moves inland.
Lake Arthur, Louisiana, reported a top wind gust of 96 mph, while just south of Cameron, Louisiana, reported an 89 mph gust.
Before landfall, Lake Charles, Louisiana, had already seen 7.5 inches of rain and wind gusts up to 75 mph. A flash flooding warning is in effect there.
Flooding had also begun as tides quickly rose along the Louisiana coast.
Delta is the fourth named storm to make landfall in Louisiana this year. The region was hit hard by Hurricane Laura in August. Louisiana has attributed 30 deaths to Laura, Gov. John Bel Edwards said Friday.
Storm surge — which is especially dangerous — is forecast to be near 11 feet in parts of Louisiana.
The hurricane-force wind gusts are expected to begin this afternoon and last through the evening for parts of southwestern Louisiana, especially from Cameron to Lake Charles. Winds gusts could reach 100 mph in Lake Charles and southern Louisiana.
Louisiana could also see tornadoes throughout the day.
Rainfall totals could reach 6 to 12 inches Friday, with local areas getting up to 15 inches in southern Louisiana. Flash flooding is expected.
The heavy rain will move inland after landfall, spreading through Louisiana and into parts of Arkansas and Mississippi overnight.
By Saturday morning, Delta will have weakened to a tropical storm, but gusty winds and heavy rain will continue north across the Mississippi and Tennessee Valleys through Saturday.
In the continental U.S., Delta is the first Greek alphabet hurricane on record to make landfall and the 10th named storm this season to make landfall, which is another record.
The other nine named storms that made landfall this season were: Tropical Storm Bertha (South Carolina); Tropical Storm Cristobal (Louisiana); Tropical Storm Fay (New Jersey); Hurricane Hanna (Texas); Hurricane Isaias (North Carolina); Hurricane Laura (Louisiana); Tropical Storm Marco (Louisiana), Hurricane Sally (Alabama); and Tropical Storm Beta (Texas).
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