The National Weather Service has Polk and the surrounding area under a wind advisory through early Friday morning as gusts are expected upward of 35 mph as the remnants of Hurricane Francine head this way.
The Polk County Emergency Management Agency posted this morning that the wind advisory is in place until Friday morning, September 13, 2024 at 5 a.m.
East winds are expected to be 10 to 20 mph with gusts up to 35 mph, and will likely send unsecured items in yards and tree limbs around the area.
The potential for power outages is also expected, EMA officials reported. It can also make vehicles with a high center of gravity difficult to drive as they get hit by wind gusts while on the roadway.
Officials are asking drivers to be cautious over the coming day.
Alongside the wind, the chance for more rain and thunderstorms is in store for Polk moving into the afternoon hours. Temps are up to 76 degrees for the day (a good day to open the windows) and at least a tenth of an inch of rain is expected.
Hurricane Francine made landfall on Wednesday after in southern Louisiana, and has since moved inland and lost strength into a Tropical Depression.
The storm made landfall as a Category 2 storm. Per national reporting on CBS, 382,000 customers were without power across Louisiana and another 61,000 were without power in Mississippi after the storm blew inland and weakened. So far, no injuries or deaths were reported.
