ALERT: Hurricane Irma (Updated-September 7, 2017)
September 7, 2017
Irma is still a Category 5 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 180 mph. Reports state it has maintained intensity above 180 mph longer than any storm in Atlantic basin history.
This morning, the National Hurricane Center stated: “The eye of Irma should continue to move just north of the coast of Hispaniola today, be near the Turks and Caicos and southeastern Bahamas by this
evening, and then be near the Central Bahamas by Friday..”
Florida, Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina have all declared states of emergency, and mandatory evacuations took place in the Florida Keys and were set to begin today in the Miami area.
According to The Weather Channel:
Miami-Dade County ordered its first mandatory evacuation in 12 years Wednesday. The order goes into effect at 9 a.m. Thursday.
About 420,000 people living in Miami Evacuation Zones A and B along the coast are expected to be told to flee. The last time a similar evacuation was ordered was for Hurricane Wilma in 2005.
[In the Florida Keys], mandatory evacuations have been ordered for both visitors and residents ahead of the storm. An estimated 25,000 or more left the area, causing bumper-to-bumper traffic on the single highway linking the islands to the mainland.
The New York Times reports:
Hurricane Irma, one of the strongest ever recorded in the Atlantic, made direct hits on Barbuda, St. Barthélemy, St. Martin, Anguilla and the British Virgin Islands, and raked the United States Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico.
The death toll from the storm stood at 11 on Thursday morning, but the authorities warned that it would rise as communications improved.
Nearly 70 percent of households in Puerto Rico were without power after hurricane-force winds and torrential rain. Almost 50,000 people were without water, according to the territory’s emergency management agency.
The Category 5 hurricane, which by 5 a.m. Thursday had slowed to 180 miles per hour from 185, left Barbuda in shambles, damaging 95 percent of its buildings and leaving the island “barely habitable.”
Major airlines have travel waivers in place, including: American Airlines, Delta Air Lines and United Airlines. Many cruise lines are also impacted, read more here.
According to the National Hurricane Center:
SUMMARY OF WATCHES AND WARNINGS IN EFFECT:
A Hurricane Warning is in effect for…
* Dominican Republic from Cabo Engano to the northern border with
Haiti
* Haiti from the northern border with the Dominican Republic to Le
Mole St. Nicholas
* Southeastern Bahamas and the Turks and Caicos Islands
* Central Bahamas
* Northwestern Bahamas
A Hurricane Watch is in effect for…
* Cuba from Matanzas province eastward to Guantanamo province
A Tropical Storm Warning is in effect for…
* Dominican Republic from south of Cabo Engano westward to the
southern border with Haiti
* Haiti from south of Le Mole St. Nicholas to Port-Au-Prince
* Cuba provinces of Guantanamo, Holguin, and Las Tunas
Interests elsewhere in the Dominican Republic and Haiti, as well as
Cuba and Florida should monitor the progress of Irma. A Hurricane
Watch will likely be issued later this morning for portions of
southern Florida and the Florida Keys.
For storm information specific to your area, please monitor products
issued by your national meteorological service.
DISCUSSION AND 48-HOUR OUTLOOK
——————————
At 800 AM AST (1200 UTC), the eye of Hurricane Irma was located
near latitude 20.1 North, longitude 69.0 West. Irma is moving
toward the west-northwest near 17 mph (28 km/h), and this general
motion is expected to continue with some decrease in forward speed
for the next couple of days. On the forecast track, the eye of Irma
should continue to move just north of the coast of Hispaniola today,
be near the Turks and Caicos and southeastern Bahamas by this
evening, and then be near the Central Bahamas by Friday.
Maximum sustained winds remain near 180 mph (285 km/h) with
higher gusts. Irma is a category 5 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson
Hurricane Wind Scale. Some fluctuations in intensity are likely
during the next day or two, but Irma is forecast to remain a
powerful category 4 or 5 hurricane during the next couple of days.
HAZARDS AFFECTING LAND
———————-
STORM SURGE: The combination of a life-threatening storm surge and
large breaking waves will raise water levels ABOVE NORMAL TIDE
LEVELS by the following amounts within the hurricane warning area
near and to the north of the center of Irma. Near the coast, the
surge will be accompanied by large and destructive waves.
Turks and Caicos Islands…15 to 20 ft
Southeastern and central Bahamas…15 to 20 ft
Northwestern Bahamas…4 to 7 ft
Northern coast of the Dominican Republic…3 to 5 ft
Northern coast of Haiti and the Gulf of Gonave…1 to 3 ft
Northern coast of Cuba in the warning area…5 to 10 ft
Water levels around Puerto Rico should subside today.
WIND: Hurricane conditions are expected to begin within the
hurricane warning area in the Dominican Republic and Haiti today,
with tropical storm conditions beginning in the next few hours.
Hurricane conditions are expected to begin in the warning area in
the southeastern Bahamas and the Turks and Caicos Islands later
today with tropical storm conditions expected within the next
several hours. These conditions will spread into the Central
Bahamas by tonight or early Friday.
Hurricane and tropical storm conditions are possible within the
watch area in Cuba by Friday. Tropical storm conditions are
expected to begin within the warning area in Cuba tonight. Hurricane
conditions are expected in the northwestern Bahamas Friday night and
Saturday.
RAINFALL: Irma is expected to produce the following rain
accumulations through Saturday:
Northeast Puerto Rico and the British and U.S. Virgin Islands…An
additional 2 to 4 inches.
Much of the Bahamas and the Turks and Caicos…8 to 12 inches,
isolated 20 inches.
Northern Dominican Republic and northern Haiti…4 to 10 inches,
isolated 15 inches.
Eastern and Central Cuba…4 to 10 inches, isolated 15 inches.
Southern Haiti…1 to 4 inches.
In all areas this rainfall may cause life-threatening flash floods
and mudslides.
SURF: Swells generated by Irma are affecting the northern Leeward
Islands, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, the southeastern Bahamas,
the Turks and Caicos Islands, the northern coast of the Dominican
Republic, and they should start affecting portions of the southeast
coast of the United States later today and tonight. These swells
are likely to cause life-threatening surf and rip current
conditions. Please consult products from your local weather office.
Please contact the PR Team if you have any questions or concerns: TravelLeadersGroupPR@TravelLeaders.com.