Tidal surge ahead of Hurricane Sally

The tidal surge ahead of Hurricane Sally is pushing water onto roadways, lawns and docks in parts of coastal Mississippi Monday.

Residents in the town of Kiln, where many homes sit high on stilts along the Jourdan River and its tributaries, appeared to have evacuated or were preparing to do so.

Michael "Mac" Mclaughlin, a 72-year-old retiree who moved to Kiln a year ago, was preparing to haul his boat to his son's house in Hattiesburg, Mississippi, before heading to New Orleans to ride out Sally there with his girlfriend.

He says this will be the third tropical storm event he's had to endure since moving into his dream retirement home on the water in April 2019.

He stayed for the others. But for Sally, he is leaving.

"It would be dumb to stay here," Mclaughlin said. " I think 110-mile-an-hour winds – even though my house, you know, was kind of hurricane-proof with all the new type of strapping and all that kind of – it was built in '14 (referring to 2014). So, the guys that built it really did a good job, but I just don't want to be here when the water's that deep and be stranded. That wouldn't be smart."

He wasn't alone. Most of the residents along the Jourdan River and its tributaries leading to the Gulf had moved their boats and cars to higher ground in nearby store parking lots or roadside.

Though most who live in this area are used to occasional flooding, many said they hadn't seen this kind of threat to their community since Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

Forecasters said the biggest threat is flooding, with as much as two feet of rain falling in some areas.

With tidal surge being pushed in from eastern winds already bringing water levels up, Sally was expected to bring a tidal surge that could mean up to 10 or more feet of water.

There was a mandatory evacuation for the town, and it appeared most residents listened.

"All the cars are gone," Mclaughlin said. "All the boats are gone. So, it looks like everybody is taking heed. I think about 95% of the people are going to be out of here."

The National Hurricane Center warned of an "extremely dangerous and life-threatening storm surge" for areas outside the levee protection system that protects the greater New Orleans area stretching from Port Fourchon, Louisiana, to the Alabama/Florida border.