for wind, rain through weekend

By DAVID PHELPS

The Natchez Democrat

NATCHEZ &045;&045; Steady winds, heavy rain and possibly tornadoes are what the Miss-Lou can expect Hurricane Rita to bring, the National Weather Service told officials in two briefings Friday.

National Weather Service meteorologists said residents of the Miss-Lou should prepare for winds between 20 and 30 miles per hour &045;&045;with gusts up to 50 mph &045;&045; three to six inches of rain and possible tornadoes beginning Friday night and lasting into early next week.

A tornado watch was issued at 5:30 p.m. Friday, effective until 6 a.m. today.

Meteorologist Alan Gerard forecast winds to be heaviest for the Miss-Lou early Saturday morning, about the time Rita makes landfall near the Louisiana/Texas border.

Statewide rainfall will vary according to the path the storm takes once it hits land.

If Rita takes the course the weather service is predicting, it will stall out somewhere in northeast Texas, dropping 10-20 inches of rain on Northwest Louisiana as a consequence.

Should the storm veer to the east as it loses strength, parts of northern Mississippi could be targeted for heavy rainfall.

While flash flooding is a concern for the Miss-Lou, the Mississippi River would not be in danger of flooding unless 10 inches or more of rain falls.

Representatives of Entergy and Southwest Mississippi Electric Power Association were on hand at Friday’s briefings to try to allay concerns.

Entergy Customer Service Manager Stephen Caruthers said the sustained winds were not as much of a concern as the gusts.

&uot;It sounds like we’re not going to get the kind of wind that we did with Katrina, but if we do, we could be right where we were on Aug. 29,&uot; he said.

Caruthers said local crews are standing by, but he had not heard of outside crews coming in to aid Adams County.

Just in case, Caruthers requested the parking lot of the old Wal-Mart in Magnolia Mall be reserved for use as a staging area, as it was during the immediate aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.

Southwest’s Jimmy June said the county was only marginally better off than before Katrina.

&uot;In some ways we’re better (prepared) due to the fact that Katrina tore down a lot, but there’s still so much overhang,&uot; June said.

Damage was expected to be less extensive throughout the rest of Southwest’s nine-county service area, meaning more of the company’s resources could be concentrated on any affected areas.

The Adams County Board of Supervisors met after the briefing to extend the state of emergency another seven days and to issue a new state of emergency for Hurricane Rita.

They also voted to send a memo to county employees seeking those who wished to work overtime in the wake of the coming hurricane.

Employee overtime is expected to be eligible for reimbursement by the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

The board also voted to issue authority to board President Darryl Grennell to declare a curfew based on the recommendation of Sheriff Ronny Brown. Supervisors said it was a precautionary measure and no curfew would be ordered unless the sheriff asked for it.

Brown said a curfew was a good tool for law enforcement, but, based on the calm following Katrina, he did not anticipate a need for one at this time.

&uot;If this group (of evacuees) is as nice as the last one, I don’t think we’re going to have any problems,&uot; he said.

If he were going to ask for a curfew, Brown said he would do so in conjunction with Natchez Police Chief Mike Mullins.

Mullins said he did not see a need for a curfew as well, but that he would be coordinating with Brown to make sure the city and county law enforcement remain on the same page.

Authority was also given to Grennell to order the mandatory evacuation of low-lying trailers and mobile homes, pending the recommendation of the Civil Defense Department.

Natchez Mayor Philip West also signed proclamations extending the state of emergency relating to Katrina and announcing a state of emergency due to Rita.

Civil Defense Director George Souderes announced his office would be operating an Emergency Operation Center 24 hours a day beginning Friday. The number to the EOC is (601) 442-7021.