Casinos Ordered Closed/With Updates 7-9 & 7-10

The Mississippi Gaming Commission has ordered all casinos to be cleared and closed by midnight tonight.

Also, a mandatory evacuation order is in place now for all low lying areas in Harrison and Jackson counties of Mississippi.Sun Herald

Forecasts show that Hurricane Dennis is still expected to land somewhere on the Alabama - Florida state line. However, I have been keenly watching the track of Dennis and it seems to me that it is moving further west. I have been monitoring the track of this storm all day and have everything ready in case it does decide to come visit the beautiful Mississippi Coast. We are still under a hurricane warning.

UPDATE: Hurricane Dennis has been upgraded to a Category 3 after having been downgraded after crossing Cuba. It is possible Dennis could become a Category 4 again before making landfall in the Gulf Coast states. Accuweather

UPDATE: Civil Defense officials in Harrison County(where I live) at 9:00pm have ordered the mandatory evacuation of Zone B, which is basically every thing south of Interstate 10. Even if Zone C is ordered to evacuate, I will not be affected.

I would like to thank the Harrison County Sheriff's Department for keeping me updated through e-mails. Our local television station doesn't do a very good job.


UPDATE: Received via e-mail from the National Hurricane Center

HURRICANE DENNIS SPECIAL DISCUSSION NUMBER 22 NWS TPC/NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER MIAMI FL
7 PM EDT SAT JUL 09 2005

WHAT A DIFFERENCE 2 HOURS MAKES! AIR FORCE AND NOAA HURRICANE HUNTER AIRCRAFT INDICATE THE CENTRAL PRESSURE OF DENNIS DROPPED 11 MB IN AN HOUR AND A HALF. THE MAXIMUM FLIGHT-LEVEL WINDS REPORTED N OF THE CENTER WERE 105 KT...AND THERE WERE LIKELY STRONGER WINDS IN THE NORTHEASTERN QUADRANT THAT THE AIRCRAFT DID NOT SAMPLE.
THIS SPECIAL ADVISORY UPGRADES DENNIS TO A 100 KT CATEGORY 3 HURRICANE BASED ON THE AIRCRAFT DATA.

105 knots=120mph dropped 11mb in 2 hours!!! If the forecasters are freaking out, I am definitely freaking out.

UPDATE: 11:00pm My Mom and sister Denise were in Zone B. They and their cat and dog are now at my house. So, the totals, 3 humans, 4 cats, 2 dogs, and 2 birds. It's going to be a fun night. When they first came, the parrot started flying around and my dog was barking at their cat, which is kinda of a wuss anyways.(Don't tell my sister I called her cat a wuss,PLEASE).

UPDATE: July 10 5:30am
The forecasters still are not sure exactly were Dennis will be making landfall. We will decide later if we need to go my sister Debbie who lives 15 miles further inland. The animals have settled down and no major skirmishes between the dogs or between the dogs and cats. The Quaker parrot settled down after being given some apple slices and cherries. Now, if I could figure a way to calm my Mom down.

UPDATE: July 10 8:15am
It looks like Mississippi has dodged the bullet again. Forecasters are projecting it to land further east, possibly just east of Mobile. I pray for all those in Alabama and Florida. They really don't need this again.

UPDATE: July 10 3:33pm
Hurricane Dennis made landfall around 3:00pm just east of Pensacola as a Catagory 3 storm, decreasing in strength just as it made landfall. That is good news for Florida. Here in Mississippi, just some rain at times and winds gusts at about 30-40mph.

UPDATE: July 10 3:45pm Hurricane Dennis downgraded to a Catagory 2. Yippee!!! Mississippi is no longer under a hurricane warning, just a tropical storm warning.

UPDATE(LAST ONE): July 10 7:15pm
At 6:00pm curfews and evacuation orders have been lifted for Harrison County.

From the Harrison County Web-site

Working in conjunction with the Harrison County Emergency Management Agency (EMA), the Mississippi Gulf Coast Convention & Visitors Bureau and the Mississippi Hotel & Lodging Association are reaching out to neighboring communities in Florida, Alabama and northeastern Mississippi to assist those whose luck with Dennis was not as fortunate. The entities are working closely with hotel properties to make sure that people whose homes were damaged by Hurricane Dennis will have shelter after the storm passes at reduced rates. Displaced persons can place reservations by calling toll free (888) 388-1006.