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Katrina now Category 4 stormHurricane warning for Morgan City, Louisiana to Alabama-Florida border
 As Katrina approaches, residents of New Orleans cause a traffic jam on I-10 West, leaving the city. RELATEDHURRICANE KATRINA8 p.m. ET Saturday Position of center: 360 miles southeast of the mouth of the Mississippi River Latitude: 24.8 north Longitude: 85.9 west Top sustained winds: 115 mph (185 kph) Source: National Hurricane Center SPECIAL REPORT
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YOUR E-MAIL ALERTSMIAMI, Florida (CNN) -- Hurricane Katrina was packing winds of up to 145 mph early Sunday as it approached the U.S. Gulf Coast, the National Hurricane Center said early Sunday. The National Hurricane Center said Katrina -- now a Category 4 storm -- could announce its Monday arrival with tropical storm-force winds Sunday night. At 10 p.m. (11 p.m. ET) Saturday the hurricane center issued a hurricane warning from Morgan City, Louisiana, to the Alabama-Florida border, an area that includes New Orleans. A warning means that hurricane conditions are expected within the warning area within the next 24 hours. The hurricane center said the storm could be upgraded to a Category 4, with winds from 131 mph to 155 mph, late Saturday or Sunday. Such winds are capable of causing extreme damage. "This is a very, very dangerous hurricane," hurricane center Director Max Mayfield said. (Watch video of how New Orleans reacted to warning) Katrina, already has been blamed for seven deaths in Florida, where it made landfall Thursday as a Category 1 hurricane. As much as 18 inches of rain fell in some areas, flooding streets and homes. (See video of the damage floodwaters left in one family's new house) Twelve-foot waves already were approaching parts of the northern Gulf Coast. Officials fear New Orleans, Louisiana, is vulnerable because it sits an average of 6 feet below sea level. Mandatory evacuations were in effect for some of Louisiana's low-lying areas; residents in other low-lying areas are being encouraged to leave. Governors of both Louisiana and Mississippi declared emergencies Friday in anticipation of the strengthening storm. "Ladies and gentlemen, this is not a test. This is the real deal," New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin said at a news conference. He urged people to remain calm, "board up your homes, make sure you have medicine, make sure your car has enough gas in it," and prepare to leave. Highways leading out of the city had bumper-to-bumper traffic. Several major interstates, including 55, 59, 10 and 12, were converted to one-way routes away from New Orleans, the Louisiana Department of Transportation said. From there drivers can continue farther north or stay in higher areas that are less at risk. The governors of both states urged caution while driving, because a single wreck could tie up traffic for hours. Robert Latham, director of the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency, said the state was recommending evacuations along the coast "and even several counties inland." Mandatory evacuations could follow later, he said. "There's about 36 hours for folks to get ready," said Federal Emergency Management Agency director Michael Brown. "Beyond that, it's just too late." "I can't emphasize enough to viewers how serious FEMA is taking this storm," he told CNN. The agency has dispatched teams to both states. "We're preparing for the worst and praying for the best," Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour told CNN. The last time Mississippi or Louisiana were hit by a Category 4 storm was in 1969, when Hurricane Camille killed 143 people in the Gulf states. Latham said he attends a memorial service for those victims every year and keeps a book about the storm on his desk. He said his office has done all it can "for the citizens of this state to prepare for this type of event." The Pascagoula Naval Station in Mississippi sent two guided missile frigates, the USS Stephen W. Groves and the USS John L. Hall, out to sea Friday evening to avoid the approaching hurricane. Eglin Air Force Base, in the Florida panhandle, on Saturday began evacuating 40 F-15 fighter jets to bases in Texas and New Mexico. Other aircraft were being sent off, as well. Florida Gov. Jeb Bush on Friday asked the White House to declare Miami-Dade and Broward counties federal disaster areas. More counties could be added to the list. Florida Power and Light Company said that by Saturday afternoon it had restored electric service to about half of the nearly 1.5 million customers who lost power Thursday. Conditions as of late SaturdayAt 10 p.m., the hurricane center said Katrina was 335 miles southeast of the mouth of the Mississippi River. A tropical storm warning and a hurricane watch stretched from the Florida-Alabama border east to Destin, Florida, and from west of Morgan City to Intracoastal City, Louisiana. Five to 10 inches of rain, and up to 15 inches in some areas, was forecast for the central Gulf Coast on Sunday evening. The storm had begun turning north and was moving west-northwest at near 7 mph. An earlier tropical storm warning for the Florida Keys was discontinued. Oil rig evacuationsSome oil platforms and rigs in the Gulf of Mexico have been evacuated. Six oil companies operating offshore facilities evacuated a total of at least 150 people. Most of those employees were described as "nonessential" to production, and rigs and platforms continued to operate.(Watch the video of drilling crews securing rigs and seeking safety.) Two companies -- Newfield Exploration and Murphy Exploration -- said they may pull out production workers and shut down some facilities Saturday, depending on the hurricane's path. At least 12 platforms and nine oil rigs in the Gulf have been evacuated, a small portion of the 953 manned rigs and platforms operating there, according to the Interior Department's Mineral Management Service. CNN's David Mattingly, Susan Candiotti, Jacqui Jeras and Rob Marciano contributed to this report. Copyright 2005 CNN. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Associated Press contributed to this report. 
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