This Parking Garage there, thats at the Hard Rock Hotel and casino and, of course, these firefighters and some of the First Responders trying to get through it in biloxi, mississippi there. Thats one of the hardest hit areas. The flooding took the first floor of the casino under water. The Biloxi Fire Department took this video as the firefighters were wading through it. Minutes ago, nate was downgraded to a Tropical Storm. So far is knocked out power to nearly 73,000 customers in alabama, florida, and mississippi. We are tracking the impact of the storm with a team of meteorologists here in atlanta and reporter in mississippi and alabama. Lets begin with meteorologist ivan cabrera, the newest information from the National Hurricane center, what are you learning about the strength of the storm . The good news is no longer tracking a hurricane here. It is now a Tropical Storm with winds of 70 miles an hour, though as ill show you in the current wind gusts, not finding anywhere near that strength. Wind field, were pretty much done. The winds at their peak, 7 0 miles an hour, there is that wind speed at keisler Air Force Base and louisiana, highest wind gust, 89 miles an hour. Cat 2 would be 96. The water did come in. Gulf of mexico did take over in biloxi for quite some time. Along i90, pictures of some of the damage there. Look at ocean springs, upwards of 10 feet. 6 feet at pascagoula, mississippi. So this was a cat 1. Imagine if this was a cat 2 or cat 3, the potential was there for that to happen yesterday as the gulf waters are very warm. What was against this system was the forward speed. It was marching and booking through the gulf. Thankfully that allowed this to stay a category 1. Still the threat of a tornado or two in the next few hours here. The bands tend to have spin in them. So could spawn a quick tornado, and that is why we still have Tornado Watch from pensacola to panama city. That threat will continue over the next several hours. At this point, well start transitioning from a wind event to a rain event that will encompass the eastern u. S. , upwards of 2 half a foot of rainfall in the next couple of days with flood watches in effect with that. All right. Ivan, thank you very much. Well check back with you throughout the show. Talked about what happened in mississippi, how it is lingering a little bit. Flooding, there are Power Outages and he mentioned martin. Martin savidge is standing by in biloxi. Tell us what youre seeing. How have conditions changed over the last hour. Good morning to you. It is improved, no doubt about it. Believe it or not, this was actually the worst hurricane since Hurricane Katrina at least in this part of mississippi. I should straighten that out. And it wasnt as bad as many had feared. There were times they were talking about this could be a category 2 coming ashore. In the end, it was a category 1. Still, you were rocking and rolling as we were, because it was not just the way the water was falling out of the sky and the wind was blowing, but also the way that the Gulf Of Mexico decided to take up residency on the shoreline here, especially on u. S. Highway 90. That is one of the great concerns they have had because they knew that that highway, such a thorough fare, east and west, it would cut off a major route. There was also flooding in the casinos here in biloxi. Three in particular. The hard rock, the imperial, and im going to lose my thought on the other one. But the Golden Nugget, thanks very much. The good news is that it looks like the water got primarily into the Parking Garages and into the public spaces, so thats the entryway areas, the ones closer to the ground. However, were being told there was no flooding in the gaming area. So thats good there as well. There was one dynamic rescue in harrison county. A family in a car that turned in some water, they used a high
profile truck, got everybody out, theyre okay. And on top of it, there was a fire they had to deal with. But, again, no injuries here and back side of the storm is already starting to push away. So it is going to improve, daylight will tell us the real story here. There is a lot of debris on it. So theyll have to send trucks down there first before the public starts driving on it. And well see what the morning brings. You hold up so well through all of this. Thank you so much. Were glad everybody is okay. Alabama is feeling nate now. Ivan was talking about mobile. And wind and the rain theyre getting. Guess whos there . We have ed lavandera there in mobile. What are things look like where you are . Reporter good morning, guys. That wind and rain is already started dying down as the center or what used to be the eye of the storm has passed to the west of where we are. A little north now. So were starting to see the back side of the storm and that will bring the rain and windfall significantly down. Really the story we have seen throughout the night here is the story of the storm surge. Were on the edge of mobile bay. Behind me you can see the water still pushing north in the storm surge is really going to be something to as the daylight takes over here in the next couple of hours, to be able to get a better sense of just how significant the damage is from our Vantage Point over here, storm surge has pushed water out over the roadways here, just to the just to the west of where we are, so that would be on the eastern edge of downtown mobile. So hard to get a sense right now, mobility is a little limited into what we can see and just how widespread that will be. I dont think there is any question that there is water on roadways, and low lying areas, the question is just how many homes have taken on water, how
many businesses have taken on water. A lot of that is assessment cant take place until the brunt of the storm has fully passed and then daylight kicks in, and that will give teams the ability to assess that situation and just to see how widespread the flooding situation and where the storm surge pushed water into, once we get that daylight, well be able to better assess that. We heard from martin in biloxi, that there was just one rescue, no reports of injuries. What are you hearing from officials there in mobile . Reporter havent heard anything like that. We saw, you know, very few people out and about. So, you know, in the mobile area, we havent heard any of these major reports. You never know in some of the outlying areas if there were people who trapped in homes, maybe wanted to try to get away in some kind of way. Havent heard anything major
like that over the overnight hours. Ed lavandera for us in mobile, alabama. Well learn more about the impact as the sun comes up and officials get out to fan out across some of the communities there. Thank you so much, ed. We are going to talk more about the coverage of now Tropical Storm nate and the impact all morning long. Lets turn to the president. President trump talked about talked about a lot with reporters last evening, including his relationship with the Secretary Of State, Rex Tillerson and his Chief Of Staff, general john kelly. And what he plans to do about north korea. Well talk about that. Also, the las vegas gunman left behind key calculations pertaining to his massacre. What these numbers authorities now believe mean as new details emerge. And the scandal with Harvey Weinstein, talked about growing rift, at least the reports of that growing rift between himself and the Secretary Of StateRex Tillerson. That was after the secretary reportedly called him a moron and talked about the future of white house Chief Of Staff general john kelly. John kelly is one of the best people ive ever worked with. Hes doing an incredible job. And he told me for the last two months he loves it more than anything hes ever done. Hes a military man. But he loves doing this, which is Chief Of Staff, more than anything hes ever done. Hes doing a great job. He will be here in my opinion for the entire seven remaining years. No, no, he likes secretary tillerson. So do i. We have a very good relationship. We disagree on a couple of things. Sometimes id like him to be a
little bit tougher, but other than that, we have a very good relationship. The president reiterated his wish to strike a temporary deal with democrat opens obamacare that he says is exploding. He wouldnt clarify his Calm Before The Storm Comment and what that meant, nor would he explain his tweets regarding north korea. When he said only one thing will work. Although he criticized Harvey Weinstein with the sexual allegation claims against him, he dismissed his own remarks about women leaked in an Access HollywoodAudio Recording Last Year as locker room talk. Look at this, this new Ap University of chicago poll, finds the president , we dont have it on the screen yet, but President Trumps Approval Rating is now at 32 . Back to the Breaking News this morning, what is now Tropical Storm nate over the gulf coast, causing some serious flooding you see here. Martin savidge is watching
from the storm from biloxi, mississippi, where some of the pictures were taken. How are you doing, martin . Reporter were doing better. There was a storm surge and that was a big fear they had in this area. Anywhere from maybe 7 to 11 feet, whether it lived up to that, still remains to be seen. But no question the water just came surging right out of the Gulf Of Mexico. In fact, there was a time we were set up across the street to show you some images there, and it just got too bad. Well be back with more in a minute. Also, Key Information revealed on a note the las vegas gunman left behind. You see that in the circle there. What his handwritten calculations tell investigators about his plot to massacre innocent people. Kevin, meet your father. Kevin Kevin Kevin KevinKevin Kevin KevinKevin Kevin Kevin trusted advice for life. Kevin, hows your mom . Life well planned. See what a Raymond JamesFinancial Advisor can do for you. After a hall of fame career, its no wonder why i use blueemu arthritis cream. Blueemus nongreasy, deeppenetrating formula gets down deep into those joints for big time pain relief. Blueemu, it works fast and you wont stink. Whole blendshair by garnier. Ishing care. Legendary olive haircare. Infused with Olive Oil Olive leaf extracts. It softens and shines for naturallybeautiful hair. Garnier whole blends legendary olive. Find every blend at walmart. For you, its always now over later. And pause. Not even in your vocabulary. So when a cold sore tingle strikes you act on it. Only abreva can heal a cold sore in as little as two and a half days
when used at the first sign. It starts to work immediately to block the virus and protect healthy cells. Nothing heals a cold sore faster. And because abreva acts on it. You can too. Act on it, with abreva. Directv has been rated 1 in Customer Satisfaction over cable for 17 years running. But some people still like cable. Just like some people like banging their head on a low ceiling. Drinking spoiled milk. Camping in poison ivy. Getting a papercut. And having their arm trapped in a vending machine. But for everyone else, theres directv. For 1 rated Customer Satisfaction over cable switch to directv. Call 1800directv. So good to have you on board with us this morning, early. Im christi paul. Im victor blackwell. Breaking news this hour, nate is now a Tropical Storm. It made landfall twice overnight. First in louisiana, then mississippi, each time a category 1 hurricane. This is the first hurricane to make landfall in mississippi since Hurricane Katrina. That was in 2005. This storm is bringing strong winds and heavy rains. Look at this. There is some major flooding in some areas. This was taken inside the Golden Nugget casino in biloxi, mississippi, there. I would not want to be stuck in that. Kudos who got a shot of that. More than 72,000 customers do not have power, not just in alabama, but the florida panhandle, mississippi as well. As storms expected to weaken as it continues to move further
inland, which it is doing right now. Were seeing more of a problem that nate is causing since landfall. Watch this. You can see the surge is halfway up inside this entrance. There is some escalators straight ahead. There is the surge halfway out the door. Storm surge is no joke. This is what they warned about. Im only about maybe six or seven steps in, all the way up to my ankles. Goes further back, the road dips further back. Really, really rolling now. And an indication clearly that nate if not right on shore, right up against shore here in biloxi. There was Martin Savidge. This is the bay of biloxi. You see the big gap, thats the eye of the hurricane. Thats the center of the storm. The highway 90 will be will have to be cleaned before we can access it again. We have a lot of Power Outagesaround here. But thats to be expected, i guess. We have been watching this storm, it is one of the quickest moving storms on record, maybe the fastest. By the time the sun breaks, it ought to be pretty day. Ivan cabrera tracking Tropical Storm nate. Ivan, we are seeing some images of what happened as it hit. How much life does this thing have in it and what will it do as it moves up the coast . I think it will be a Big Rain Event for the southeast and this is going all the way up to boston. It will be rain, not so much wind. Fascinating storm and we do have it official now, this is the fastest moving forward speed storm in the Gulf Of Mexico. And anywhere from 25 to 30 miles an hour, the reason for that, we had an area of low pressure, and push this thing very quickly and thankfully quickly to the north because if it had meandered here for a while, conditions were
favorable for this to intensify, which is what we were worried about. At this point, on the other side now, this is a Tropical Storm, so the wind field has diminished. Still gusty winds, especially the outer bands here that continue to move to montgomery. Ill switch over to the radar, see that more clearly and the center of the storm was the eye there. The band is moving through montgomery and look at the feeder bands continuing to pull that tropical moisture up. Thats why the storm on the eastern half is certainly healthier now than on the western side with the dry air getting pulled in on the other side. Still a problem with the Tornado Watch, still going to watch this closely. Get the feeder bands rolling in, a lot of difference in wind speeds at the surface and up above as it begins to fuel that friction, rotating thunderstorms, well watch for that, numerous tornado warnings. Well see if any of these materialize, touch ground. That threat remains here. And now well transition into a Big Rain Event, the front continues to push to the north and the east, and well take a look at some the official track for the National Hurricane center as this thing is going to really get going to the north and east and move rather quickly as well as it gains wind speed here. The track at this point is basically where the rain is going to be. You dont have to worry about winds at this point. I dont think that will be an issue for you. Well have gusty winds, but the accumulating rainfall here which by the way, a lot of folks in the southeast are saying bring it on. We had some significant issues, lack of rainfall, we had rain since the last storm system. Some areas, beneficial, i think that will also allow for this, not to be a huge flood event, still flood watches in effect, but if we had been raining here for you, a couple of weeks at a time this would be a bigger factor. Look at that windchill into the northeast. As it does so, it is going to do that rather quickly. By monday, this thing monday
into tuesday, completely out of our hair. Were not done with nate yet. Big cities could be impacted today and you say the beginning of the week. I wonder, ive learned fr from weather there is another disturbance out there. What is the concern for another u. S. Landfall . Any . None at this point here. Dont have to worry about that. One at a time, please, right . Ophelia would be the next one. The disturbance is out in the middle of the atlantic. Im not worried about it at this point. Hopefully nate will be it. Hurricane season continues through the end of november. With each passing week, chances for that continue to diminish, hopefully n will be it for 2017, already just a horrific year. It has. We hope so. That n is it. Youre right. Ivan cabrera, thank you so much. Back to mississippi. Still feeling nate, seeing the storm surge there, cnns Martin Savidge is standing by in
biloxi. Biloxi got the worst of it, maybe in the clear now. Tell us what is happening there and officials had to get out