FFI Gulf Coast Council

Just three weeks after Hurricane Laura devastated areas of the western side of the Gulf Coast Council (western Louisiana), Hurricane Sally has slammed the eastern areas of the Council. Hardest hit was Gulf Shores, Alabama, with winds of 100 mph. However, coastal flooding seriously impacted a much wider area, from southeast Louisiana, coastal Mississippi, to the Florida Panhandle.  And torrential rainfall flooded areas inland from southern Mississippi to as far east as Tallahassee.

The slow-moving storm stalled just off the mouth of the Mississippi River before tracking on a more northeasterly course. Due to shearing from upper level winds, most of the serious weather was to the northeastern quadrant of the storm. This resulted in some areas of coastal Alabama and northwest Florida receiving up to 4 inches of rain per hour.  Currently, Sally is bringing heavy rain to the Carolinas as a low pressure system.

In addition to property damage, there were washouts along beaches. Areas of the coast may be unavailable to anglers for weeks to come. Unlike Laura, where there were widespread reports of storm-related fish kills, there appears to be only a handful of fish kill reports, mostly from small ponds and lakes.

As of 7am this morning, Hurricane Laura was a category 3 storm in the northwest Gulf of Mexico with sustained winds of 120 mph.  However, forecasters are now predicting that shortly before it hits the Texas-Louisiana border shortly after midnight Thursday that winds will reach 130 mph, making it the most powerful storm to hit Louisiana since Hurricane Rita.

While winds will be very dangerous, the greatest threat is the storm surge.  Much of the low-lying coast along west Louisiana and east Texas is only several feet above sea level.  Surges are forecast to reach a maximum of 10-15 feet within 50 miles of landfall, and several feet from east Galveston to Grand Isle.  The National Hurricane Center is expecting storm surge to possibly penetrate up to 30 miles inland from the coast in southwest Louisiana and far southeast Texas.  Residents of coastal areas are strongly advised to move inland and seek shelter.

Laura will move quickly north and into Arkansas, then east towards North Carolina.  While wind speeds will quickly decline, the remnant of Laura will bring widespread flooding and possibly tornados across it’s entire path.  Flash flood warnings have been issued for parts of Arkansas on Friday.

At their recent meeting, the Fly Fishers International Board of Directors elected Dave Peterson as their new Chairman. Peterson succeeds Tom Logan, who will now serve as Vice President – Conservation.

Dave is a retired school superintendent from Pentwater Michigan. He has fly fished for over 35 years. A life member of FFI, he has served on the Education Committee, Executive Committee, and as Chair of the Conservation Committee. According to Dave, all of those duties have given him a sense of satisfaction of “giving something back” to the sport.

In accepting this position, Dave stated “I am honored to be given the opportunity to serve as the new Chairman of the FFI Board. My goal is to ensure that the Board of Directors, our Committees, our Councils and Clubs work hand in hand with our President and CEO and the FFI staff to continue to advance our collective vision to become the definitive voice of fly fishing of All Fish, All Waters.”