LIVE: Tornado threat sweeps across Gulf Coast states
The National Weather Service issued multiple tornado warnings for Texas and Louisiana Wednesday as a strong storm cell moved east across southeast across the Gulf Coast. Follow live updates.
Coverage for this event has ended.
The threat of severe thunderstorms will shift to the coastal Carolinas and Florida on Thursday.
Tornado Watch Extended
The Storm Prediction Center has issued a Tornado Watch for portions of Alabama and Florida until 1 A.M. CDT. Meteorologists say damaging wind gusts to 65 mph and isolated tornadoes are possible as a line of storm moves eastward.
Tornado Warning
A Tornado Warning has been issued for Hancock and Pearl River counties in Mississippi. The warning goes until 7:45 p.m. CDT. Meteorologists are tracking a severe thunderstorm capable of producing a tornado, moving northeast at 40 mph.
Pensacola hour-by-hour forecast
Areas near the Alabama-Florida line have a couple of hours before the rains start to move in. So far, no counties of either state are under any official watches or warnings.
Tornado Warning
The National Weather Service has issued a Tornado Warming for Lafourche and Jefferson parishes in southeastern Louisiana. The warning is expected to continue until 7 p.m. CDT. Radar indicates the rotating storm is moving northeast at 30 mph.
Flash Flood Warnings
A Flash Flood Warning has been issued for: St. Tammany & Washington parishes in Louisiana and Pearl River & Walthall counties in southern Mississippi.
Radar indicated 2 - 4 inches of rain has already fallen and an additional 1 - 3 inches is on the way. Meteorologists remind drivers to never venture into flood waters.
FOX Weather Radar
A line of severe storms with damaging winds, hail, lightning and plenty of torrential rainfall is heading into New Orleans. Wind gusts to over 60 mph are possible in a few of the storms.
Power outage map
Around 40K customers remained in the dark on Wednesday evening, as power crews worked to assess the damage storms caused. According to Poweroutage.us, Texas had the most outages, with nearly 30K customers without power.
Tornado watch
A Tornado Watch remains in effect for parts of Louisiana and Mississippi until 10 p.m. CDT. A watch means that conditions are conducive for tornadic development in and around the watch the box area.
FOX 3D Weather Radar
For the first time in several hours, the FOX 3D Weather Radar is not tracking any Tornado Warnings along the Gulf Coast. But meteorologists say the threat of damaging thunderstorms remains. Several counties are under Severe Thunderstorm Warnings, where large hail and damaging winds are the main concerns.
Baton Rouge 3-day forecast
Once the severe weather threat diminishes, the weather looks tranquil for the next days for clean-up to begin in hard hit areas of Texas and Louisiana.
A homeowner showed FOX Weather's Robert Ray the damages to his home and his neighborhood in Lake Charles, Louisiana.
The storm broke all his windows and pulled off his doors, even with the deadbolt on, he said.
His neighbor suffered a cut to the leg and their home was destroyed.
"It's amazing that anybody even made it," he said. "The house is just gone."
Mary Phan was driving home from school at Lamar University Wednesday when a tornado passed right in front of her car. With nowhere to seek safety, she stopped in the middle of Interstate 10 while her cousin recorded the tornado from the passenger seat.
Video shows several homes that have been damaged by possible tornadoes in Lake Charles, Louisiana Wednesday morning.
FOX Weather app 3D radar
The National Weather Service in New Orleans has issued a tornado warning for western Wilkinson County in southern Mississippi until 3:30 p.m. CDT.
FOX Weather 3D radar image
The National Weather Service has allowed the tornado warnings for the New Orleans area to expire. However, severe weather continues as the line of storm moves east.
Download the free FOX Weather app to track the storm.
Dick Gremillion with Lake Charles Homeland Security gives an update on damage reports in town from an apparent tornado.
The National Weather Service in New Orleans has issued a severe thunderstorm warning for Wilkinson County until 3:30 p.m. CDT.
A tornado watch also remain in effect for the area until 10 p.m.
Louisiana State University will close at 3 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 27, due to incoming severe weather.
Mary Phan recorded this video earlier in the day of a tornado barreling through Interstate-10 in Orange County, Texas.
Dick Gremillion with Lake Charles Homeland Security estimates about 15% of parishes in Louisiana are without power.
He estimates 10 homes have severe damages but no injuries have been reported yet.
Across Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi more than 75,000 are without power.
Active tornado watch for southeast U.S.
The National Weather Service has extended the tornado watch for parts of Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi until 10 p.m. CDT as the threat of severe weather continues.
The National Weather Service in New Orleans has issued tornado warnings for Feliciana, east Baton Rouge Parish, east Livingston and central Tangipahos parishes in southeastern Louisiana.
Significant storm damage has been found in Mauriceville, Texas, reports FOX Weather's Robert Ray.
Weather balloons are being launched at 1 p.m. and 4 p.m. CDT by National Weather Service meteorologists in New Orleans to get updated data of the atmosphere ahead of approaching severe weather.
Vidor, Texas: A barbecue restaurant was damaged along Main Street and large trees were toppled along I-10, according to National Weather Service storm report.
Severe storm threat expands east
NOAA's Storm Prediction Center now says severe storms are "very likely" into New Orleans, Covington, LA, and Gulfport, MS.
A woman was injured when windows blew out during high winds about 3 miles outside of Lake Charles, Louisiana, according to the National Weather Service, sourcing a 911 call center.
Pasadena, Texas emergency manager Azell Carter gives update on reports of minor damage south of his town from severe storms.
UPDATE: These 3 Tornado Warnings have expired.
The NWS in Lake Charles issued a three tornado warnings based on a radar-confirmed tornado located over Lunita. The storm is moving east at 30 mph.
The tornado warning until 12:15 p.m. CDT includes: DeQuincy, Buhler and Perkins.
Another warning until 12:30 p.m. includes: Lake Charles, Prien and Carlyss.
The third warning for Hackberry continues until 12:30 p.m.
National Weather Service reports a 64 mph gust at Lake Charles, LA airport.
The National Weather Service in Houston and Galveston postponed a planned weekly weather radio test Wednesday due to severe weather in the area.
The NWS will possibly try again Thursday between 11 a.m. and noon.
Map of areas under a tornado watch on Oct. 27.
A tornado watch remains until 4 p.m. CDT for 12 parishes in Louisiana and four counties in Texas.
A sever thunderstorm warning remains in effect until 11:30 a.m. CDT for Caddo Parish in Louisiana, eastern Marion, southeast Cass, eastern Harrison and northeast Panola counties in Texas.
Hazards include 60 mph wind gusts.
The storm wall is moving east at 35 mph.
Severe weather statistics for Oct. 27.
As of noon more than 570,000 people are under warnings for severe weather across Texas and Louisiana.
The strong storm moving east into Louisiana has brought down more than 1,900 lightning strikes in a 15-minute period.
A storm spotter recorded this video of a tornado west of Bridge City, Texas.
Correction: The original tweet said the twister was in Louisiana. The location was in Bridge City, Texas.
The NWS issued a flash flood warning for the Beaumont, Texas area until 1:30 p.m. CDT.
A tornado warning is in effect until 10:45 a.m. CDT for southwestern Beauregard Parish, northwestern Calcasieu Parish in Louisiana and south central Newton County in southeastern Texas.
Dan Reilly, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service in Houston, joins FOX Weather as a lot of active weather moves through the area.
A tornado warning for for central Harrison County in northeast Texas is in effect until 10:30 a.m. CDT.
A confirmed tornado was observed at 9:54 a.m. CDT over Hartburg, near Deweyville, moving northeast 30 mph, according to the NWS.
Residents should take cover in Deweyville, Starks and Lunita.
According to the NWS, a "large and extremely dangerous tornado" was observed near Forest Heights or Mauriceville morning northeast at 30 mph.
The NWS estimates the tornado will be in these areas soon: Hartburg, Deweyville Starks and Lunita.
FOX Weather's Robert Ray is in southeast Texas covering the developing tornado threat.
A tornado warning for northeast Jefferson and southwest Orange counties remains in effect until 9:15 a.m. CDT.
According to the NWS, a severe thunderstorm capable of producing a tornado was over the Southeast Texas Regional Airport at 9:02 a.m. moving at 30 mph.
The storm's rotation has weakened but it may organize again, warns the NWS.
It's a myth that tornadoes don't hit urban areas.
A shelf cloud over Houston Wednesday, October 27, 2021.
A large shelf cloud moved over Houston Wednesday as a fast-moving storm front brought the threat of tornadoes to the area. (Image credit: Paul Medica)
The NWS uses different language to alert residence depending on the severity of the tornado threat.
A tornado watch means the weather conditions could produce a twister. A warning means a tornado has been indicated by radar or someone has seen it on the ground. If a warning is issued near you, it's time to take action. Move to the lowest level of your home or building and away from windows.
The NWS issued multiple tornado warnings for Texas and southwest Louisana.
Here are the current warnings as of 8:30 a.m. CT:
Tornado warning for Harris County in Texas, including northern parts of Houston, until 8:45 a.m.
Tornado warning for Jefferson County in Texas until 8:45 a.m.
Tornado warning for Harris and Montgomery counties in Texas until 8:30 a.m.
Tornado watch for southeast Texas and southwest Louisiana until 4 p.m.
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