Latest / EM Morning Brief / Florida and Alabama emergency declarations drive mandatory and voluntary evacuations; Kilauea and Great Sitkin stay at WATCH

Transcript

Florida and Alabama emergency declarations drive mandatory and voluntary evacuations; Kilauea and Great Sitkin stay at WATCH · EM Morning Brief

• 0:00
  Cedric: Good morning, I'm Cedric and this is your EM Morning Brief for Thursday, October 8, 2026.
• 0:06
  Cedric: Hurricane Isaias is a Category 1 hurricane in the Gulf with maximum sustained winds of 80 miles per hour and a minimum pressure of 979 millibars, centered near 23.3 north, 91.2 west as of the 4 a.m.
• 0:21
  Cedric: Central advisory, moving east northeast at 9 miles per hour.
• 0:26
  Cedric: A Hurricane Warning runs from Ocean Springs, Mississippi, to the Bay and Gulf county line in Florida.
• 0:31
  Cedric: A Storm Surge Warning runs from the mouth of the Mississippi River to the Steinhatchee River, with a Storm Surge Watch continuing east to Yankeetown.
• 0:41
  Cedric: The National Hurricane Center forecasts peak inundation of 5 to 7 feet from Ocean Springs to Indian Pass and in Mobile Bay, 3 to 5 feet from the mouth of the Mississippi River to Ocean Springs, and 1 to 3
• 0:54
  Cedric: feet in Lake Pontchartrain.
• 0:57
  Cedric: Rainfall of 3 to 7 inches is forecast from far southeastern Louisiana to the Florida Panhandle, with localized totals to 10 inches, and isolated tornadoes are possible Friday night in coastal Alabama and the Panhandle.
• 1:10
  Cedric: Landfall is expected late Friday into early Saturday.
• 1:13
  Cedric: Isaias is the first hurricane of the 2026 Atlantic season, the latest first hurricane in 121 years of NOAA records.
• 1:24
  Cedric: Volcanic unrest continues on two fronts.
• 1:26
  Cedric: The Hawaiian Volcano Observatory holds Kilauea at Volcano Alert Level WATCH with aviation color code ORANGE, reporting minor spattering at the north and south vents inside Kaluapele and a near surface dike intrusion recorded from September 30 into October 1,
• 1:42
  Cedric: with the next high fountaining episode still possible.
• 1:46
  Cedric: In Alaska, the Alaska Volcano Observatory holds Great Sitkin at WATCH and ORANGE as slow lava effusion continues in the summit crater, and holds Shishaldin at ADVISORY and YELLOW on elevated seismicity, infrasound and sulfur dioxide.
• 2:02
  Cedric: On the federal and lifelines side, offshore energy operators have pulled back ahead of landfall.
• 2:08
  Cedric: About 25 percent of Gulf oil production is shut in and eight of 371 manned platforms are evacuated as of Wednesday, with Chevron removing nonessential personnel.
• 2:19
  Cedric: The National Park Service has closed all of Gulf Islands National Seashore in Florida and Mississippi, including Fort Pickens, Opal Beach, Johnson Beach, the Okaloosa Area and Crab Island.
• 2:31
  Cedric: Let's run through the states.
• 2:33
  Cedric: Alabama.
• 2:34
  Cedric: Governor Kay Ivey's state of emergency took effect Wednesday at 4 p.m.
• 2:37
  Cedric: and covers 40 counties, including Mobile, Baldwin, Montgomery, Tuscaloosa and Dallas.
• 2:44
  Cedric: It prepares the Alabama National Guard for activation, triggers the Alabama Unconscionable Pricing Act and waives federal motor carrier rules.
• 2:52
  Cedric: Baldwin County and several of its municipalities declared local emergencies after an emergency meeting, issued a voluntary evacuation for coastal, low lying and flood prone areas, and closed all county facilities Friday.
• 3:06
  Cedric: Two shelters open on the Eastern Shore, one Thursday afternoon at the county coliseum in Robertsdale with a co located pet shelter, and one Friday morning in Foley.
• 3:16
  Cedric: County transit is running residents to shelters while conditions stay safe.
• 3:20
  Cedric: Dauphin Island has issued an evacuation notice for the entire west end.
• 3:25
  Cedric: Mobile Bay faces the top of the forecast surge range at 5 to 7 feet.
• 3:30
  Cedric: Alaska.
• 3:32
  Cedric: The Alaska Volcano Observatory's Wednesday updates keep Great Sitkin at WATCH and ORANGE, with slow lava effusion continuing in the summit crater and minor local earthquakes, and keep Shishaldin at ADVISORY and YELLOW on continued low level unrest.
• 3:46
  Cedric: The observatory lowered Gareloi to GREEN after volcanic activity declined.
• 3:51
  Cedric: (Official update published about 48 hours ago.)
• 3:55
  Cedric: We have more to cover this morning, but first, a quick word from our sponsors.
• 4:00
  Cedric: Thanks for supporting our sponsors who help make EM Morning Brief possible.
• 4:05
  Cedric: Now, back to this morning’s updates.
• 4:08
  Cedric: Florida.
• 4:08
  Cedric: Executive Order 26-202 declares a state of emergency for 25 Panhandle and Big Bend counties and lets the Division of Emergency Management stage preparedness resources.
• 4:20
  Cedric: The State Emergency Response Team is staging generators, fuel, flood barriers, boxed water, shelf stable meals, tarps, Tiger Dams and sandbags near Tallahassee and in the Santa Rosa area.
• 4:32
  Cedric: (Official update published about 40 hours ago.)
• 4:35
  Cedric: Okaloosa County declared a local state of emergency Wednesday at 5 p.m.
• 4:40
  Cedric: and ordered a mandatory evacuation of Zones A and B effective noon Thursday, covering Okaloosa Island and parts of coastal Fort Walton Beach, Destin, Mary Esther and Niceville.
• 4:52
  Cedric: Two Okaloosa shelters open Thursday at 6 p.m., one general population and special needs with pets accepted, and the county Emergency Operations Center moves from Level 2 to Level 1 at 7 a.m.
• 5:03
  Cedric: Friday.
• 5:04
  Cedric: Three county airports close Thursday at 9 p.m.
• 5:07
  Cedric: Walton County began a voluntary evacuation Wednesday at 8 p.m., opened two shelters including one serving power and oxygen dependent residents, and meets Thursday morning to weigh a mandatory order.
• 5:20
  Cedric: Escambia and Santa Rosa counties close schools Friday and are distributing sand, and Highway 399 on Santa Rosa Island closes Friday in both directions.
• 5:30
  Cedric: Hawaii.
• 5:32
  Cedric: The Hawaiian Volcano Observatory's Wednesday status report keeps Kilauea at WATCH and ORANGE.
• 5:38
  Cedric: Minor spattering continues at the north and south vents, and the observatory has updated its outlook for possible outcomes following the near surface dike intrusion recorded in Kaluapele from September 30 into October 1.
• 5:51
  Cedric: Episode 55 high fountaining remains a possible but not certain outcome.
• 5:57
  Cedric: Louisiana.
• 5:59
  Cedric: A Tropical Storm Warning covers the coast from the Jefferson and Plaquemines parish line east to west of Ocean Springs, Mississippi, with 1 to 3 feet of surge forecast in Lake Pontchartrain.
• 6:11
  Cedric: Plaquemines Parish is readying equipment and weighing a voluntary evacuation, with Parish President Keith Hinkley meeting Wednesday with the sheriff's office, the school board and Chevron, and pointing residents to the parish reverse 911 system.
• 6:25
  Cedric: St.
• 6:26
  Cedric: Bernard Parish is monitoring conditions and pushing alert sign ups.
• 6:31
  Cedric: Mississippi.
• 6:32
  Cedric: The Hurricane Warning begins at Ocean Springs and runs east, with the Storm Surge Warning starting at the mouth of the Mississippi River.
• 6:41
  Cedric: Forecast inundation is 3 to 5 feet from the river mouth to Ocean Springs and 5 to 7 feet east of there.
• 6:49
  Cedric: The National Weather Service is telling communities from Ocean Springs to Gulf County, Florida, to prepare for long duration power outages, with hurricane force winds possible in coastal Jackson County and tropical storm force winds in Hancock and Harrison counties.
• 7:04
  Cedric: MEMA urged statewide preparation Wednesday and is tracking the forecast.
• 7:09
  Cedric: Hancock, Harrison and Pearl River counties have opened sandbag sites, and Hancock County Emergency Management is weighing a Red Cross supported shelter with cots, blankets, food and water.
• 7:21
  Cedric: South Carolina.
• 7:22
  Cedric: The City of West Columbia issued a boil water advisory Wednesday at 8:41 a.m.
• 7:28
  Cedric: for addresses on Goldfinch Lane after a water main break, directing affected customers to boil water for at least one full minute before drinking or cooking until the advisory is lifted.
• 7:40
  Cedric: That wraps today's EM Morning Brief.
• 7:42
  Cedric: New episodes drop Monday through Friday in the 5:00 AM hour P.T., so the day starts with clarity instead of catch-up.
• 7:49
  Cedric: Follow on your favorite podcast player.
• 7:52
  Cedric: EM Morning Brief is an EOC Voices Podcast.
• 7:55
  Cedric: Stay Safe.