Zeta Triggers Hurricane Warning For New Orleans As Gulf Coast Awaits Storm

Zeta will strengthen on its way across the Gulf of Mexico, likely hitting the U.S. coast as a Category 1 hurricane on Wednesday, the National Hurricane Center said. Parts of Louisiana and Mississippi are now under hurricane warnings, including metro New Orleans.

“This is a life-threatening situation,” the hurricane center said Tuesday, urging people to take precautions against the risk of flooding and other hazards.

The system is currently a tropical storm, weakened by its landfall overnight on Mexico’s Yucatán Peninsula. Zeta has sustained winds up to 65 mph, the hurricane center said in its 2 p.m. ET update. The storm is traveling northwest at 14 mph.