Hurricane Delta a category 4 storm as it approaches US Gulf

HOUSTON (ICIS)–Hurricane Delta is approaching the US Gulf with sustained winds of 130 miles/hour and is expected to make landfall on the US Gulf Coast sometime late Friday or early Saturday, according to the latest update from the National Hurricane Center (NHC).

As of 15:00 GMT on Tuesday, the storm was approaching the Yucatan Peninsula at 16 miles/hour, NHC meteorologists said.

The storm was upgraded to category 4 after a NOAA hurricane tracking aircraft measured winds at 130 miles/hour.

The exact path of the storm remains uncertain, but projections have it making landfall around southeast Louisiana by the weekend.

The following map shows the forecast path of Delta.

Source: National Hurricane Center

Louisiana is home to many petrochemical plants and refineries throughout its length. The storm could cause some of these plants to shut down as a precaution. They could remain offline if strong winds cause power outages.

Several chemicals and plastics such as polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and monoethylene glycol (MEG) remain tight because of previous shutdowns caused by Hurricane Laura.

Oil and gas production in the US Gulf are also likely to be interrupted by the storm, where offshore oil wells account for 17% of the nation’s crude production, according to the Energy Information Administration (EIA).

As of Tuesday morning, the US Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) had not started tracking outages or shut-ins as the storm is still too far to the south.

However, Chevron began evacuating all personnel from its platforms in the Gulf and is shutting in facilities.

UK-based major BP said it has begun securing its offshore facilities and evacuating non-essential personnel from four offshore platforms.

Forecasters said the chances have increased that Delta will create storm surge and hurricane force winds along the coasts of Louisiana and Mississippi beginning on Friday.

If Delta makes landfall in Louisiana, ports could shut down and railroads could divert trains.

New Orleans could close its flood gates as a precaution, which would prevent any interchange among railroad companies with eastern carriers.

Lake Charles, Louisiana, which took a recent hit from Hurricane Laura, is in the western part of the state and is not in the projected path of Delta at present.

If Delta makes landfall on the US Gulf Coast, it would be the fifth named storm to make landfall this season.

Hurricane season ruins through the end of November.

Click here to view the US Gulf storms – impacts on chemicals topic page.

Thumbnail image shows a map of the storm. Source: National Hurricane Center