The National Hurricane Center declared at 11:00pm EDT on Monday night that Hurricane Gustav, which had been ravaging the Gulf Coast for more than 12 hours, was downgraded to a tropical storm.
Additionally, all coastal hurricane warnings for areas of Texas, Louisiana, Alabama, and Mississippi, had been discontinued, the Miami-based center said.
Gustav slowed to a pace of only 13 MPH as it strolled through western Louisiana, and has its sights aimed at northeastern Texas tomorrow morning.
With the decreasing speed at which the storm that forced the evacuation of New Orleans saunters comes decreased wind speeds of about 60 MPH.
Gustav is projected to become a tropical depression tomorrow, but is still expected to pour half a foot to one foot of rain on areas as north as Arkansas and Oklahoma.
The National Hurricane Center also warns that Gustav could bring with it tornados to the lower Mississippi Valley and the central Gulf Coast through the night to tomorrow morning.
