How will two hurricanes in the Gulf affect you?

COLUMBUS, Miss. (WCBI) – You’ve probably heard about it by now…two hurricanes are expected to enter the Gulf of Mexico early next week and could cross paths before making landfall. But how will this affect you, and could the storms combine?

The short answer is, no, the storms will not combine into what you may have seen referred to on social media as a “super hurricane”. However, the storms could affect each other’s intensity and trajectory.

With two hurricanes within a few hundred miles of each other, we have to take the Fujiwhara effect into account. This is when storms can either spin around each other or one could be thrown off course. Obviously, this can be a good thing or a bad thing. In this specific scenario, with the way the timing works out, a major influence from the Fujiwhara effect is unlikely. This means both storms will largely act independently.

As of 10 pm Saturday, Tropical Storm Marco is continuing to strengthen as it enters into the Gulf of Mexico. Winds are up to 65 mph and pressure is down to 994 mb. There is a potential for some rapid intensification as the storm passes over warm water, but the storm will likely weaken just a bit as it approaches land. Landfall of Marco is expected somewhere in Louisiana or Mississippi on Monday with winds up to 80 mph.

Meanwhile, Tropical Storm Laura is in the central Caribbean. Winds were sustained near 50 mph as the storm continues to the west. Laura is expected to cross over Hispaniola and Cuba, which could limit any intensification in the short-term. However, the storm will enter the Gulf of Mexico by Monday before strengthening into a Category 1 hurricane. As of now, Laura is expected to make landfall somewhere in Louisiana or Mississippi late Wednesday.

This means that, remarkably, there will likely be two hurricanes at once in the Gulf of Mexico within 24 hours. It appears that Marco will be a little bit ahead of Laura, but only by a day or two. Landfall of the center of the storms are expected to be about 48 hours apart.

In short, tropical weather impacts are possible anywhere along the Gulf Coast next week. There is still plenty of uncertainty in the forecast and there is plenty of time for things to change. Keep an eye on the weather and, if you live along the Gulf Coast, spend some time this weekend reviewing your hurricane preparedness plan.

However, one thing is for sure, we won’t be dealing with any type of “mega-hurricane” that you may have seen making the rounds on social media.