President Trump Approves Kay Ivey's Declaration of State of Emergency

MONTGOMERY, AL - President Donald Trump has approved a state of emergency declaration made by Gov. Kay Ivey for the state of Alabama. Ivey made the declaration Saturday ahead of Hurricane Irma, as it became clear that the storm was heading toward Alabama.

According to a report from the National Weather Service today, Irma is expected to have noticeable impacts across the eastern half of Central Alabama through tonight. Wind gusts of 35 to 45 MPH are occurring across far southeast Central Alabama today, and conditions will worsen through the afternoon and evening as strong
winds spread northward with gusts possibly reaching 55 mph. Scattered tree and power line damage is possible along with power outages. Some minor structural damage is also possible, according to the report.

FEMA administrator Brock Long issued a statement this afternoon regarding Trump's approval of Ivey's declaration.

"The greatest wind gusts and impacts are expected to be generally along and east of a line from Oneonta to Sylacauga to Montgomery to Troy. Conditions will gradually improve on Tuesday as Irma continues to move northwestward into Western Tennessee.

According to WBMA meteorologist James Spann, the highest winds across Alabama will come from about 12:00 noon today through 6:00 a.m. tomorrow. Winds over the eastern counties, in the tropical storm warning, will average 30-40 MPH with higher gusts, especially on ridges. For the rest of the state in the wind advisory, winds will average 20-30 MPH with an occasional higher gust. (For more updates on this story and free news alerts for your neighborhood, sign up for your local Birmingham Patch morning newsletter.)

National storm updates can be found here. A Tropical Storm Warning was issued Sunday for Alabama counties east of I-65, but Monday, almost all of Central Alabama will be under some form of severe weather advisory during the day. Spann said rain amounts of 2-4 inches are possible over East Alabama, with 1-2 inches for the rest of the state between now and early tomorrow morning. Major flooding issues are not expected. And, there is no risk of tornado in Alabama today.

Tornado watches went up Sunday afternoon for many counties in Irma's path. In the Tampa Bay area, watches are in effect until 12 a.m. Monday for Pasco, Hillsborough, Manatee, Sarasota, Pinellas, Polk and Hernando counties. Tornado watches mean that conditions are favorable for tornado development.

(Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)