Chief Meteorologist KATC Lafayette, LA - Weather for Acadiana/S LA. Forecasting for Gulf Coast since 1985. 2020 Tropical Weather Conference Broadcaster of Year.
Lafayette, LA
Joined March 2009
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Rob Perillo retweeted
I took about 50,000 photos through a 14" telescope last night to produce this: A hyper-detailed photo of the full moon. The fidelity of the photo was great enough to allow me to greatly enhance the color, revealing a hidden world of geological diversity.
Rob Perillo retweeted
Honoring a sports legend from the eye of #HurricaneIsaias. ✈️💨
Our crew just launched dropsondes into the storm in honor of Coach Ditka on the landfall mission. It begs the ultimate question
"Who would win, Ditka or a Hurricane?"
@ESPN @ChicagoBears #Isaias #ChicagoBears #NFL
Rob Perillo retweeted
🚨 EXTENSIVE STORM SURGE DAMAGE – PENSACOLA BEACH, FL! 🌊⚠️
The aftermath of Hurricane Isaias is incredible across Pensacola Beach, Florida! Thick layers of sand cover many roads after powerful storm surge pushed water and debris inland. Damaged homes, missing roofs, partially collapsed structures, half-sunken boats, downed power lines, and scattered debris paint a devastating picture of the hurricane's impacts. Evidence of significant coastal flooding can be seen throughout the area.
🎥 Footage available for media licensing: [email protected]
#HurricaneIsaias #StormSurge #PensacolaBeach #HurricaneAftermath #Florida
Rob Perillo retweeted
JUST IN: Saildrone Explorer SD-1045 passed through the eye of Category 3 Hurricane Isaias, recording wind gusts over 90 knots (103 mph).
This is the same USV that filmed inside Hurricane Sam in 2021, setting a Guinness World Record.
Watch ↓ @NOAA_AOML @noaapmel
Rob Perillo retweeted
BIRDS TRAPPED IN THE EYE 🌀🐦
Hurricane Hunters and Doppler Radar have confirmed that there are birds trapped in the eye of #Isaias right now because the winds are too strong in the eyewall. As a result, they stay within the calmer eye until reaching land. In this image, the blue colors are birds, the red color is rain. Unfortunately not all birds survive due to exhaustion, starvation or even drowning, but most do...especially depending on the type of bird. Landfall is this evening, so they just have to hold on for a little bit longer!
Rob Perillo retweeted
If you were around New Orleans or south Louisiana when this happened, it's an exchange you'll never forget. And I love both of these guys -- Jim Mora & Ron Swoboda.
You also get the cameo from Buddy D.
What a clip.
Rob Perillo retweeted
Although we've not officially had a hurricane in the Atlantic, we'll see what @NWSNHC says about Fay (4 mph shy of a hurricane operationally) in their post season analysis. A September 20th SAR pass suggests hurricane winds which seems to be corroborated by ASCAT UHR estimates.
Rob Perillo retweeted
What weather is the hardest to investigate after the fact?
I asked forensic meteorologist @robperillo and it turns out some weather mysteries leave a lot fewer clues than others. 🔎🌪️
More from our conversation on Atmosphere- podcasts.apple.com/us/podcas…
Rob Perillo retweeted
Can you take the human out of a meteorologist?
@robperillo's TV job requires empathy and connection. His forensic work requires facts without feelings.
Except… maybe it’s not quite that simple.
New on the Atmosphere Substack: atmospherepodcast.substack.c…
RT @CraigSetzer: Wow, giant mixer in the sky! 2026 September Nor'easter.
"“Big whirls have little whirls,
That feed on their velocity;
And…
Rob Perillo retweeted
In today's newsletter I recap all the Hurricane Polo superlatives from Tuesday, including gnarly record warmth hurricane hunters measured while passing through its eye. Plus, another Hawaii hurricane inbound? Could be one of the stronger approaches yet. ⬇️
michaelrlowry.substack.com/p…
Rob Perillo retweeted
#Hurricane #Polo’s central pressure has fallen to 892 mb—the 2nd lowest on record for an eastern North Pacific hurricane (to 180°). Only Hurricane Patricia was lower, reaching 872 mb in 2015. Lower pressure generally indicates a stronger storm.
Rob Perillo retweeted
Remember this? The I10 bridge is about 15 miles from Pensacola Pass.
🌀22 Years Ago - The Gulf Coast was experiencing 10-15 feet of storm surge from Hurricane #Ivan. The I-10 Bridge over Pensacola Bay was severely damaged as a result of wave action on top of 12-13 ft storm surge.
💻weather.gov/mob/ivan
ALT Photo of the severely damaged I-10 bridge over Pensacola Bay with entire sections of the bridge missing and water almost overlapping the highway during Hurricane Ivan. 10-15 feet of storm surge was measured along the coast during Hurricane Ivan. The damage to the I-10 bridge resulted from the wave action on top of a 12-13 foot storm surge in that part of Pensacola Bay. The photo also shows half of a semi-truck hanging off the bridge.
Rob Perillo retweeted
Regarding the dredge barges and equipment in Freshwater Bayou (technically a man made canal built in the 60's), here is a little map showing the area that they are suction dredging (red) and the placement area they are pumping it to (green).
Estimated to be just shy of 1 million cubic yards. This is a USACE project and is needed every so many years to keep the cut at -16 ft. Similar recent dredge events have occurred here in 2001, 2005, 2007, 2009 and 2019.
Ironically, they are doing it again just as the Starbase news is hitting (though this was planned beforehand). Too late to put it on the property now.
Rob Perillo retweeted
Tropical Storm #Edouard has made landfall in Louisiana with max winds of 60 mph. The Atlantic has yet to have a #hurricane this year. Only 7 seasons in satellite era (since 1966) have gone into September without an Atlantic hurricane.
Rob Perillo retweeted
Aug 30 7PM CDT: Here are the latest key messages for the disturbance in the northern Gulf of America #AL97 Interests along the southwest Louisiana and Upper Texas coasts should monitor the progress of this system, as tropical storm watches or warnings could be required for portions of the area later tonight or Monday morning. For the latest information visit hurricanes.gov
ALT 1. An area of low pressure over the northern Gulf will likely become a short-lived tropical depression or storm before it reaches the Upper Texas or southwestern Louisiana coasts on Tuesday. Tropical storm watches or warnings could be required for portions of that area tonight or Monday morning. 2. Locally heavy rainfall is expected to spread westward across the Louisiana and Upper Texas Coast during the next couple of days. These rains could produce flash flooding across the Upper Texas coast and Southeast Texas.
Rob Perillo retweeted
Twenty-one years ago today, mighty #Hurricane #KATRINA smashed the Middle Gulf Coast of the United States, focusing its maximum destructive power on #Louisiana and #Mississippi. Catastrophic levee failures left most of New Orleans under water. Meanwhile, a massive storm surge—higher than any ever observed in the Western Hemisphere—obliterated whole communities across SE Louisiana and Coastal Mississippi. Where I'm sitting as I type this—in Old Town Bay Saint Louis, a block from the beach—became one with the Gulf of Mexico for a few hours. Well over 1,000 people died, and in terms of dollar damage, KATRINA remains the greatest disaster in American history. The recovery in Coastal Mississippi has been spectacular. Bay Saint Louis, in particular, has risen from the ashes—a true gem of a town. But the scars remain—little things, small reminders: the occasional empty lot where a house once stood, porch steps leading to nowhere. It's a quiet August night down here, and the Gulf is smooth and calm—but no one here forgets what it can do when a hurricane sends it into a tirade.
