MorningSong
24th August 2011, 12:47
Hurricane Irene becomes Cat. 3; Bahamas in for rough two days
NASSAU — Hurricane Irene, which has been pounding the southeastern Bahamas since sunrise, has now reached Category 3 strength, the National Hurricane Center in Miami reports in its 8 a.m. update. The storm is packing sustained winds of near 115 mph and is expected to strengthen in the next day or so, forecasters said.
Residents in the southeastern most islands of the Bahamas woke to a battering from the storm. Officials reported islands such as Little Inagua and its neighbors were seeing winds of 110 mph.
At 8 a.m. the storm's core was 55 miles southeast of Acklins Island, Bahamas, and 335 miles southeast of Nassau. Hurricane force winds extend up to 40 miles from that core and tropical storm force winds extend out up to 205 miles, hurricane center officials report.
Bahamian emergency management officials are hoping this morning that their urgent messages issued near midnight to evacuate the low-lying areas of Lovely Cay on Crooked Island in the Southeastern Bahamas were heeded.
On New Providence Island, which includes the capitol city of Nassau and 70 percent of the nation's residents, the National Emergency Management Association had opened 26 hurricane shelters late Tuesday.
Hotels filled up with residents fearing flooding or the ability of their homes to withstand category 3 storm winds. The 288-room British Colonial Hilton was fully booked this morning, mostly with Bahamians.
Tropical storm conditions are expected to move into the central Bahamas this morning with hurricane conditions due tonight. The northwestern Bahamas will greet tropical storm conditions late tonight and hurricane conditions Thursday, according to the 8 a.m. forecast.
Last night, with Hurricane Irene on its heels, this island city of 249,000 was abuzz as residents cleared grocery store shelves of water readying for the worst.
"I just want to blink my eyes and have it be Friday so I can see what's left," said Pamela Klonaris, who has weathered storms for 41 years in the Bahamas and fears what Irene will leave in its wake. "We've stayed through every hurricane, but I don't know about a Category 3."
The latest hurricane forecast models still make Irene a borderline Category 3 storm sometime Wednesday. And by midday Thursday, moving through the Bahamas, Irene's top winds would be 125 mph - only 5 mph below the threshold for Category 4.
Shoppers pushed full carts through backed up lines at the SuperValue near downtown Nassau. The water aisle was nearly dry by 7 p.m., yet the store planned to stay open until 11 p.m., or, until people stop coming, said manager Joseph Rolle.
http://www.palmbeachpost.com/storm/hurricane-irene-becomes-cat-3-bahamas-in-for-1782103.html
US warning over strengthening Hurricane Irene
US officials have warned the entire US east coast should be ready for the possible arrival of Hurricane Irene.
Now a category 2 storm heading over the Turks and Caicos Islands and south-eastern Bahamas, it may intensify to a category 4 as it nears the east coast.
But forecasters have cautioned that it is too early to predict the storm's exact path or place of impact.
Irene brought heavy downpours as it swept over the Dominican Republic where 1,000 people sought refuge in shelters.
Hurricane Irene is on a projected path to reach the US by the end of the week, possibly making landfall in Georgia, South Carolina or North Carolina.
'Larger than average'
In Puerto Rico, where US President Barack Obama declared an emergency - making it eligible for federal help - the storm knocked out power to more than half the island and affected the water supplies of more than 100,000 people.
The storm, the first hurricane of the Atlantic season, currently has maximum sustained winds of 100mph (160km/h).
But if Irene increases to a category 4 storm it could reach speeds of 131mph.
"Irene is forecast to become a larger-than-average hurricane," the US National Hurricane Center (NHC) in Miami said.
The hurricane was expected to be near the Turks and Caicos Islands and the south-eastern Bahamas by Tuesday night, forecasters said.
The NHC warned "an extremely dangerous" storm surge could raise water levels by as much as 9 to 13ft (3 to 4m) on the low-lying islands.
Irene was likely to strengthen further and could become a major hurricane within the next 72 hours as it moved over warm sea waters, they added.
"We didn't anticipate it gaining this much strength this early," meteorologist Chris Landsea told the Associated Press.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-14625665
Resources for monitoring hurricanes:
http://www.stormpulse.com/
http://www.weather.com/weather/hurricanecentral/
http://www.goes.noaa.gov/g8hu.html
http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/satellite.shtml
NASSAU — Hurricane Irene, which has been pounding the southeastern Bahamas since sunrise, has now reached Category 3 strength, the National Hurricane Center in Miami reports in its 8 a.m. update. The storm is packing sustained winds of near 115 mph and is expected to strengthen in the next day or so, forecasters said.
Residents in the southeastern most islands of the Bahamas woke to a battering from the storm. Officials reported islands such as Little Inagua and its neighbors were seeing winds of 110 mph.
At 8 a.m. the storm's core was 55 miles southeast of Acklins Island, Bahamas, and 335 miles southeast of Nassau. Hurricane force winds extend up to 40 miles from that core and tropical storm force winds extend out up to 205 miles, hurricane center officials report.
Bahamian emergency management officials are hoping this morning that their urgent messages issued near midnight to evacuate the low-lying areas of Lovely Cay on Crooked Island in the Southeastern Bahamas were heeded.
On New Providence Island, which includes the capitol city of Nassau and 70 percent of the nation's residents, the National Emergency Management Association had opened 26 hurricane shelters late Tuesday.
Hotels filled up with residents fearing flooding or the ability of their homes to withstand category 3 storm winds. The 288-room British Colonial Hilton was fully booked this morning, mostly with Bahamians.
Tropical storm conditions are expected to move into the central Bahamas this morning with hurricane conditions due tonight. The northwestern Bahamas will greet tropical storm conditions late tonight and hurricane conditions Thursday, according to the 8 a.m. forecast.
Last night, with Hurricane Irene on its heels, this island city of 249,000 was abuzz as residents cleared grocery store shelves of water readying for the worst.
"I just want to blink my eyes and have it be Friday so I can see what's left," said Pamela Klonaris, who has weathered storms for 41 years in the Bahamas and fears what Irene will leave in its wake. "We've stayed through every hurricane, but I don't know about a Category 3."
The latest hurricane forecast models still make Irene a borderline Category 3 storm sometime Wednesday. And by midday Thursday, moving through the Bahamas, Irene's top winds would be 125 mph - only 5 mph below the threshold for Category 4.
Shoppers pushed full carts through backed up lines at the SuperValue near downtown Nassau. The water aisle was nearly dry by 7 p.m., yet the store planned to stay open until 11 p.m., or, until people stop coming, said manager Joseph Rolle.
http://www.palmbeachpost.com/storm/hurricane-irene-becomes-cat-3-bahamas-in-for-1782103.html
US warning over strengthening Hurricane Irene
US officials have warned the entire US east coast should be ready for the possible arrival of Hurricane Irene.
Now a category 2 storm heading over the Turks and Caicos Islands and south-eastern Bahamas, it may intensify to a category 4 as it nears the east coast.
But forecasters have cautioned that it is too early to predict the storm's exact path or place of impact.
Irene brought heavy downpours as it swept over the Dominican Republic where 1,000 people sought refuge in shelters.
Hurricane Irene is on a projected path to reach the US by the end of the week, possibly making landfall in Georgia, South Carolina or North Carolina.
'Larger than average'
In Puerto Rico, where US President Barack Obama declared an emergency - making it eligible for federal help - the storm knocked out power to more than half the island and affected the water supplies of more than 100,000 people.
The storm, the first hurricane of the Atlantic season, currently has maximum sustained winds of 100mph (160km/h).
But if Irene increases to a category 4 storm it could reach speeds of 131mph.
"Irene is forecast to become a larger-than-average hurricane," the US National Hurricane Center (NHC) in Miami said.
The hurricane was expected to be near the Turks and Caicos Islands and the south-eastern Bahamas by Tuesday night, forecasters said.
The NHC warned "an extremely dangerous" storm surge could raise water levels by as much as 9 to 13ft (3 to 4m) on the low-lying islands.
Irene was likely to strengthen further and could become a major hurricane within the next 72 hours as it moved over warm sea waters, they added.
"We didn't anticipate it gaining this much strength this early," meteorologist Chris Landsea told the Associated Press.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-14625665
Resources for monitoring hurricanes:
http://www.stormpulse.com/
http://www.weather.com/weather/hurricanecentral/
http://www.goes.noaa.gov/g8hu.html
http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/satellite.shtml