SB QST @ ARL $ARLB066
ARLB066 Gulf Coast hams bracing for Hurricane Earl

ZCZC AG66
QST de W1AW
ARRL Bulletin 66  ARLB066
From ARRL Headquarters
Newington CT  September 2, 1998
To all radio amateurs

SB QST ARL ARLB066
ARLB066 Gulf Coast hams bracing for Hurricane Earl

Upgraded from a tropical storm September 2, Hurricane Earl has
changed direction, prompting hurricane warnings along the Gulf Coast
from Mississippi to Florida. Hurricane or tropical storm warnings
extend on either side to New Orleans and to the Florida Keys.

Northern Florida District Emergency Coordinator Nils Millergren,
WA4NDA, reports Bay County, Florida, already has opened two shelters
for possible evacuees. The shelters, the Bay County Sheriff's
Office, and Bay Medical were said to be using Amateur Radio Support.
The telephone system is ''clogged.'' Wind and rain had reportedly
picked up in the Florida Panhandle this morning. Schools in the
Florida Panhandle and in Alabama coastal areas closed early.

Weather forecasters say the storm surge near the storm's center
could be 5 to 7 feet above normal tides, and 10 inches of rain is
possible.

Before the storm changed course, voluntary evacuations already had
begun along the Louisiana coast.
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