Debby in Gulf, Expected to Become a Hurricane

A tropical storm warning was issued Sunday for Alabama to the Florida Panhandle as Debby lashed parts of the Gulf Coast with wind and rain.

The National Hurricane Center in Miami said Sunday morning that Debby was about 170 miles southeast of the mouth of the Mississippi River. It said the storm warning has now been issued from the Mississippi-Alabama border eastward to the Florida Panhandle's Ochlockonee River.

Debby's top sustained winds had increased to about 60 mph.  It is expected to become a Category 1 hurricane at some point.

People from Texas to Florida should remain alert to Debby's movement.

Forecasters said Debby could be near hurricane strength by Monday night. Meanwhile, up to six inches of rain were possible along the coast, with isolated amounts possibly reaching 10 inches.

Beryl Barrels to U.S. Coast

Tropical storm warnings were in effect for the entire Georgia coastline, as well as parts of Florida and South Carolina, according to the National Hurricane Center in Miami.

Beryl was technically still considered a “subtropical storm,” but the system is expected to bring winds and rain to the area regardless of its official classification.

Tropical storm conditions — meaning maximum sustained winds of 45 mph — could reach the coast as early as Saturday night. Three to six inches of rain are forecast for the area. Some coastal flooding is forecast, as the rain could cause high tides.

As of 8 p.m. EDT Saturday, Beryl was still centered about 220 miles east-southeast of Charleston, S.C. It had become stronger, with maximum sustained winds of 50 mph. It was moving southwest at 6 mph, with its center expected to be near the coast by late Sunday.

Beryl could dump heavy rain in the coastal counties of Georgia, and will bring a chance of rain to metro Atlanta by the end of the holiday weekend.

Until then, metro Atlantans can expect hot and dry weather on Saturday and Sunday, with afternoon highs climbing to within a degree or two of the 94-degree record set in 1936.

Tropical Storm Could Impact Gulf

The National Weather Service issued a tropical-storm warning Thursday evening that extends across the Mississippi, Louisiana and Texas coastlines.

On its current track, NWS meteorologist Bob Wagner said, Tropical Storm Lee is expected to make landfall Saturday afternoon or evening in southwest Louisiana with winds up to 60 miles per hour. Landfall at that location would bring winds of up to 40 miles per hour to the Mississippi Coast. The tropical depression was not expected to become a hurricane. It was interacting with an upper-level low-pressure system to produce large areas of showers and thunderstorms.

The tropical-storm warning was issued after the Hurricane Hunters flew into the Gulf storm Wednesday afternoon.

Wind speeds were measured at 35 miles per hour.

As Mardi Gras Ends, Tornadoes Touch Down in New Orleans

The National Weather Service says three tornadoes have touched down in southeastern Louisiana, including a twister that injured one person in St. Tammany Parish.

The tornadoes developed in a line of thunderstorms that moved across the state early Wednesday.

Forecaster Mike Shields says a tornado touched down about 10 miles southwest of Bush in St. Tammany Parish around 5:20 a.m. — injuring one person, damaging a house, destroying a trailer and knocking down trees. Emergency officials say the woman suffered a cut on her head.

Firefighters in Lacombe reported a twister that took the roof off a house just before 5 a.m. And the weather service says a meteorologist reported a tornado on the north side of Kenner near Lake Pontchartrain shortly after 6 a.m. No damage was reported.

Walgreens' Email List Compromised

I regularly use Walgreens for some photo printing and to make some special items out of photos to give as gifts.  Therefore, they have my email and from time to time they send me special offers and coupons.

Today they sent me an email telling me their email list wa compromised and to be on the lookout.

I thought I'd share that letter on here.

December 10, 2010 Dear Valued Customer, We recently became aware of unauthorized access to an email list of customers who receive special offers and newsletters from us. As a result, it is possible you may have received some spam email messages asking you to go to another site and enter personal data. We are sorry this has taken place and for any inconvenience to you. We want to assure you that the only information that was obtained was your email address. Your prescription information, account and any other personally identifiable information were not at risk because such data is not contained in the email system, and no access was gained to Walgreens consumer data systems. As a company, we absolutely believe that all customer relationships must be built on trust. That is why we believe it is important to inform you of this incident. Online security experts have reported an increase in attacks on email systems, and therefore we have voluntarily contacted the appropriate authorities and are working with them regarding this incident. We encourage you to continue to be aware of increasingly common email scams that may use your email address to contact you and ask for personal or sensitive information. Always be cautious when opening links or attachments from unsolicited third parties. Also know that Walgreens will not send you emails asking for your credit card number, social security number or other personally identifiable information. So if ever asked for this information, you can be confident it is not from Walgreens. If you have any questions regarding this issue, please contact us at 1-888-980-0963. We take your privacy very seriously, and we will continue to work diligently to protect your personal information. Sincerely, Walgreens Customer Service Team