Our opinion: Keep your guard up as storm approaches

Tropical Storm Sally threatened Terrebonne, Lafourche and most of south Louisiana on Saturday, with forecasters projecting it will likely intensify into a Category 1 hurricane before making landfall.

The storm was most likely to make landfall late Monday or early Tuesday around the Louisiana-Mississippi border as a Category 1 hurricane. But forecasters cautioned things can change quickly, and if the storm musters a more defined circulation, it could be stronger at landfall.

"It's not moving fast at all, and that means it is going to be a big water storm," WWL-TV meteorologist Payton Malone said in a 1 p.m. forecast. "We're talking rainfall, and we're talking storm surge."

Rain estimates ranged from 15 inches on the storm's northeastern side, the strongest, to 1-3 inches at its western reaches. Which communities will see the highest and lowest amounts remained uncertain. It depends how Sally intensifies and the track it takes toward landfall.

Rain and tides matter greatly here in Houma-Thibodaux. Though the area is better protected by levees than ever, heavy rain -- especially from a slow-moving storm that lingers a long time -- can cause major flooding.

Prepare:Hurricane 2020: Your guide to weathering the storm in Terrebonne and Lafourche

Some residents may remember how Juan, a Category 1 hurricane, lingered off the coast for almost a week in 1985, dropping heavy rain, with nearly 18 inches recorded in Galliano. The storm killed a dozen people across the Gulf Coast, including several on offshore oil rigs that toppled, and caused more than $1 billion damage across Louisiana. Grand Isle was under four feet of water, and about 1,200 of the island’s residents remained cut off for days by floodwaters covering La. 1. Hundreds of homes across the two parishes flooded or were damaged by wind.

So the message here is the same as always: Be prepared.

Things you can do now, if you haven't already: 

-- Stay abreast of plans from local and state officials. The Courier and Daily Comet will provide updates as officials release them. Stick with trustworthy sources and be wary of bogus and unreliable posts and rumors that often circulate during crises on social media outlets such as Facebook and Twitter.

-- Make sure you have an emergency kit that includes a few days’ worth of drinking water and nonperishable food, along with supplies like a flashlight, batteries, medications and pet food. Have some cash ready in case extended power outages shut down ATMs and credit card machines. Gas up your car.

-- Identify ahead of time where you could go if you are told to evacuate. Choose several places -- a friend’s home in another town, a motel or a shelter.

You'll find lots of other tips in the e-Edition of our 32-page annual hurricane guide, which you'll find at bit.ly/2020stormguide. Another great resource is getagameplan.org, run by the Louisiana Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness.

Most local residents know the drill by now. We got our latest run-through just two weeks ago when hurricanes Marco and Laura threatened -- but thankfully spared -- the Houma-Thibodaux area. Remember, the best time to prepare is in the calm before a storm threatens -- not amid the chaos that can arise when one is bearing down.

-- Editorials represent the opinion of this newspaper and not any single individual.