New Orleans, LA – Dense fog is blanketing much of the central Gulf Coast early this morning, making driving and marine navigation hazardous from Louisiana through Mississippi, Alabama, and the Florida Panhandle.
According to the National Weather Service offices in Mobile, Jackson, New Orleans, and Lake Charles, multiple Dense Fog Advisories are in effect through mid-morning Saturday. Visibility is expected to drop to one-quarter mile or less on land and 1 nautical mile or less on bays and sounds, with pockets of near-zero visibility where fog mixes with smoke from any active or smoldering fires.
In southeast Louisiana and southern Mississippi, including the New Orleans–Baton Rouge corridor and coastal parishes, fog is expected until 8 a.m. CST, potentially slowing travel along major routes and coastal highways. Central and southwest Louisiana, including Lake Charles, Lafayette, and surrounding parishes, are under a similar advisory from 1 a.m. to 8 a.m..
Farther east, dense fog is impacting south-central and southwest Alabama, northwest Florida, and southeast Mississippi, including the Mobile metro, coastal Baldwin County, and coastal Escambia, Santa Rosa, and Okaloosa counties in Florida, where advisories run until 8 a.m. Portions of south-central and southeast Mississippi, including Hattiesburg and Columbia, are under an advisory from 2 a.m. to 9 a.m..
Marine zones are also affected, with Mobile Bay, Mississippi Sound, Perdido Bay, and the Pensacola Bay system under a Marine Dense Fog Advisory until 10 a.m., making navigation difficult for small craft and commercial traffic.
Forecasters urge motorists to slow down, use low-beam headlights, and leave extra distance between vehicles. Mariners are advised to use fog signals, keep running lights on, and rely on radar and compass when possible.
