Hurricane Isaias is expected to wreak havoc on the Gulf Coast. Will it reach Maryland?

Isaias, which strengthened into a Category 2 hurricane on Thursday night, is expected to make landfall in the Gulf Coast region late Friday and early Saturday morning.

The first storm of the 2026 Atlantic hurricane season will bring heavy rainfall as well as possible damaging wind gusts and flooding to several southern states, but will its remnants reach Maryland and the mid-Atlantic region?

Severe weather will mostly miss the area, according to Luis Rosa, a meteorologist for the National Weather Service’s Baltimore/Washington office.

“We’re expecting rain to start over Maryland late Saturday toward early Sunday morning and probably continue all day Sunday,” Rosa said, adding that the weather service expects about an inch of precipitation.

Forecasts also show that Maryland should be safe from most of the severe weather conditions that could affect the Gulf Coast. Rosa expects the closest severe weather warnings will be in the Tidewater region of Virginia.

Local sports teams are watching the weather. The Washington Commanders host the New York Giants at 1 p.m. at Northwest Stadium in Landover, while the Ravens are on the road against Atlanta in a stadium with a retractable roof.

As of 8 p.m. Thursday, Isaias had maximum sustained winds of 100 mph, according to the hurricane center, winds could surpass the 96 mph threshold for a Category 2 storm.

Officials issued orders for tourists along the Gulf Coast to abandon beaches for safer spots inland, sending locals scurrying for gas and groceries and leading fishing crews to secure their boats before the potentially destructive storm’s arrival.

Isaias was forecast to intensify rapidly and cause dangerous conditions in the Florida Panhandle, southern Alabama and southern Mississippi when it makes landfall. Heavy rain and flooding were possible into the weekend as far north as Tennessee and North Carolina.

“We are expecting Isaias to be a dangerous hurricane when it makes landfall,” said Michael Brennan, director of the National Hurricane Center in Miami.

The Associated Press contributed to this article.