From Trussville Tribune staff reports
MONTGOMERY – Following a declaration of a state of emergency for Alabama on Oct. 5, Gov. Kay Ivey held a press conference today further addressing Hurricane Nate, which is making its way inland and will affect Alabama along with other states in the Southeast. She held the conference along with Alabama Emergency Management Director Brian Hastings and state meteorologist Jim Stefkovich.
She expressed some concerns of people being distracted by pastimes such as college football, which are normally held on Saturdays instead of preparing for the storm and watching for updates. She advised the public to be aware and keep watch on the weather forecast.
On his Twitter account, Hastings said that the storm is fast approaching and stressed readiness.
“Nate is the fastest storm of the season and will keep its strength over a significant area of Alabama,” he said. “This is an Alabama storm that will have significant state wide impact. Are you ready? Protect yourself, those you care about and minimize your exposure to the threats!”
According to Stefkovich, winds from the storm can reach up to 100 mph with gusts up to 115 mph. He estimated that tropical storm winds will begin on the coast later this afternoon and will affect the entire state.
“I cannot stress enough, Hurricane Nate is an Alabama storm,” he said. “This is our storm and it’s going to affect all of us.”
Tropical storm warnings have been issued for 37 counties in Alabama.
Shortly after the press conference, Ivey announced on her Twitter page that she signed a request for a Presidential Emergency Declaration “to ensure that we have all possible resources in place to respond to [Hurricane Nate].”