000 WTUS84 KJAN 100113 HLSJAN MSZ026>033-036>039-042>046-048>052-054>058-062>066-072>074-100415- HURRICANE DENNIS LOCAL STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE JACKSON MS 812 PM CDT SAT JUL 9 2005 ...DENNIS CONTINUES TO STRENGTHEN RAPIDLY AND IS NOW A DANGEROUS CATEGORY 3 HURRICANE TAKING AIM ALONG THE CENTRAL GULF COAST... ...AN INLAND TROPICAL STORM WARNING AND INLAND HURRICANE WATCH REMAIN IN EFFECT FOR PORTIONS OF SOUTHEAST MISSISSIPPI FROM SUNDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH DAYBREAK MONDAY... ...AN INLAND TROPICAL STORM WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR MUCH OF CENTRAL AND EAST MISSISSIPPI FROM SUNDAY EVENING THROUGH MONDAY MORNING... ...AREAS AFFECTED... THIS STATEMENT RECOMMENDS SPECIFIC ACTIONS TO BE TAKEN BY RESIDENTS OF CENTRAL AND EAST MISSISSIPPI...GENERALLY ALONG AND EAST OF INTERSTATE 55. ...WATCHES/WARNINGS... AN INLAND TROPICAL STORM WARNING AND INLAND HURRICANE WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR PORTIONS OF SOUTHEAST MISSISSIPPI. THIS INCLUDES CLARKE...FORREST...JASPER...JONES...AND LAMAR COUNTIES. THE INLAND TROPICAL STORM WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR MUCH OF CENTRAL AND EAST MISSISSIPPI. THIS INCLUDES ATTALA...CARROLL... CHOCTAW...CLAY...COPIAH...COVINGTON...GRENADA...HINDS...HOLMES... JEFFERSON DAVIS...KEMPER...LAUDERDALE...LAWRENCE...LEAKE...LINCOLN... LOWNDES...MADISON...MARION...MONTGOMERY...NESHOBA...NEWTON... NOXUBEE...OKTIBBEHA...RANKIN...SCOTT...SIMPSON...SMITH...WEBSTER... WINSTON...AND YAZOO COUNTIES. A FLASH FLOOD WATCH ALSO REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM SUNDAY AFTERNOON THROUGH MONDAY MORNING FOR THE EASTERN HALF OF MISSISSIPPI... GENERALLY ALONG AND EAST OF INTERSTATE 55. ...STORM INFORMATION... AT 800 PM CDT...THE CENTER OF HURRICANE DENNIS WAS LOCATED NEAR LATITUDE 26.3 NORTH...LONGITUDE 85.1 WEST. THIS IS ABOUT 365 MILES SOUTHEAST OF BILOXI...AND APPROXIMATELY 433 MILES SOUTHEAST OF HATTIESBURG. DENNIS IS MOVING TOWARD THE NORTHWEST NEAR 13 MILES AN HOUR. THIS MOTION IS EXPECTED TO CONTINUE...WITH A GRADUAL TURN TO THE NORTH NORTHWEST LATER TONIGHT OR SUNDAY. THIS MOTION WILL BRING THE CENTER OF DENNIS ONSHORE ALONG THE CENTRAL GULF COAST SUNDAY. DATA FROM HURRICANE HUNTER AIRCRAFT INDICATE THAT MAXIMUM SUSTAINED WINDS ARE NOW NEAR 125 MILES AN HOUR...WITH HIGHER GUSTS. THIS MAKES DENNIS A CATEGORY 3 HURRICANE ON THE SAFFIR SIMPSON SCALE. THE MINIMUM CENTRAL PRESSURE IS NOW 942 MILLIBARS...OR 27.82 INCHES. ADDITIONAL STRENGTHENING TONIGHT COULD MAKE DENNIS A CATEGORY 4 STORM PRIOR TO LANDFALL. HURRICANE FORCE WINDS MAY IMPACT PORTIONS OF INLAND SOUTHEAST MISSISSIPPI SUNDAY NIGHT. ...PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... SHELTERS ARE OPEN IN SOME AREAS. PLEASE CONTACT YOUR LOCAL EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT OFFICE...WATCH LOCAL TV...OR LISTEN TO RADIO FOR LOCATIONS OF THESE SHELTERS. YOU CAN ALSO REFER TO THE MISSISSIPPI EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT WEBSITE AT: WWW.MSEMA.ORG. RESIDENTS OF EAST MISSISSIPPI SHOULD CONTINUE PREPARATIONS FOR TROPICAL STORM FORCE WINDS AND TORRENTIAL RAIN LATE SUNDAY THROUGH MONDAY MORNING. SECURE ANY OUTDOOR ITEMS THAT COULD BECOME AIRBORNE SINCE HIGH WINDS WILL PERSIST FOR SEVERAL HOURS AS THE STORM PASSES. ...WIND IMPACTS... WINDS IN EXCESS OF 50 MPH WITH GUSTS AS HIGH AS 70 MILES AN HOUR ARE ANTICIPATED TO DEVELOP AFTER 500 PM SUNDAY OVER SOUTHEAST MISSISSIPPI. A FEW GUSTS TO HURRICANE FORCE ARE EXPECTED ROUGHLY SOUTHEAST OF A QUITMAN TO LAUREL TO HATTIESBURG LINE SUNDAY NIGHT. WINDS IN EXCESS OF 40 MPH...WITH GUSTS AS HIGH AS 60 MILES AN HOUR...ARE ANTICIPATED TO DEVELOP SUNDAY EVENING OVER EAST CENTRAL MISSISSIPPI. THESE WINDS SHOULD THEN SPREAD WEST AND NORTH... AFFECTING COMMUNITIES ALONG A BROOKHAVEN TO BRANDON TO STARKVILLE LINE BY MIDNIGHT. PLEASE KEEP IN MIND THAT ANY WESTWARD SHIFT IN THE TRACK OF DENNIS WILL SPREAD STRONGER WINDS WEST OF THIS LINE. AGAIN...DENNIS IS EXPECTED TO BE AT LEAST A CATEGORY THREE HURRICANE WHEN HE MAKES LANDFALL SUNDAY AFTERNOON. ONCE ONSHORE...DENNIS WILL BEGIN WEAKENING AS IT MOVES TOWARD EAST CENTRAL MISSISSIPPI. THE HIGHEST WINDS WILL BE ALONG AND NEAR THE CENTER OF DENNIS...WHERE TREES AND POWER LINES WILL LIKELY BE DAMAGED. ...RAINFALL... WIDESPREAD RAINFALL TOTALS OF 3 TO 5 INCHES ARE EXPECTED...WITH ISOLATED AMOUNTS UP TO 7 INCHES POSSIBLE AS DENNIS MOVES ACROSS EAST MISSISSIPPI. GROUND CONDITIONS ARE FAIRLY DRY...BUT THREE INCHES OF RAIN IN A SHORT AMOUNT OF TIME WILL PROMOTE RUNOFF AND RESULT IN A DANGEROUS FLASH FLOOD SITUATION. REMEMBER...MOST FLASH FLOOD DEATHS OCCUR IN VEHICLES TRYING TO CROSS WATER OF UNKNOWN DEPTH. ...NEXT UPDATE... THE NEXT SCHEDULED LOCAL ACTION STATEMENT WILL BE ISSUED AROUND 1100 PM CDT. $$ BUTTS