Hurricane Isabel Nears Atlantic Coast [5:00p EST - Saturday]
By ERIK SCHELZIG, Associated Press Writer
MIAMI - Hurricane Isabel's sustained winds increased to 160 mph Saturday as
the Category 5 hurricane swirled ominously closer to the Atlantic Coast.
The hurricane had earlier been lowered to a Category 4 storm after its
sustained winds fell to 150 mph. It was reclassified after a hurricane
hunter plane flew into the eye to measure its intensity Saturday afternoon.
A hurricane hits the top of the Saffir-Simpson hurricane scale when its
winds reach 156 mph.
The slow-moving, powerful storm was still several days from land, and
forecasters were unsure if it would strike the United States. However,
computer models predicted it would turn toward Georgia and the Carolinas
over the next five days.
"It's not definite, but things are looking more ominous than yesterday for
the East Coast," National Hurricane Center (news - web sites) meteorologist
Eric Blake said Saturday.
At 11 a.m. EDT, Isabel's maximum wind speed was 150 mph, down from 160 mph
earlier in the week. A storm becomes a Category 5 hurricane, the top level
of the Saffir-Simpson hurricane scale, when its winds reach 156 mph.
Isabel was centered about 405 miles northeast of San Juan, Puerto Rico,
Saturday morning and was moving west at 10 mph. Forecasters expected it to
continue that movement until Sunday afternoon.
Large ocean swells and dangerous surf conditions were forecast for the
Leeward Islands in the northeastern Caribbean. And the U.S. State
Department issued a travel warning Friday advising tourists to avoid the
Bahamas because of the storm.
The National Hurricane Center's five-day forecast for Isabel put the
hurricane roughly 420 miles east of the Georgia-South Carolina border early
Thursday, if it makes a predicted turn to the northwest. But hurricanes can
be unpredictable, and long-range forecasts have large possibilities for error.
Forecasters said Hurricane Isabel could still strike anywhere from north
Florida to Virginia, and officials warned East Coast residents to be alert.
They expected to know more about the potential direction of the storm late
this weekend.
"If you've been lax with your hurricane preparations, now's a really good
time to catch up," Blake said.
Some residents along the East Coast were taking that advice, buying water,
plywood and other supplies just in case Isabel made landfall. National
Guard officials in the Southeast said enough troops were ready to help if
necessary, despite mobilizations in Iraq (news - web sites) and other parts
of the world.
Water management officials in Florida were also worried about some of the
already-swollen rivers and lakes because a direct hit from a hurricane
could cause severe flooding.
The last Atlantic hurricane to develop into a Category 5 storm was Mitch in
1998, which killed about 11,000 people in Central America.
The last two Category 5 hurricanes to strike the U.S. coast were Andrew in
1992 and Camille in 1969. Andrew, still the most expensive natural disaster
in U.S. history with a $30 billion damage toll, tore through south Florida
and Louisiana, killing 43 people. Camille killed 143 on the Gulf Coast and
113 in Virginia flooding.
The Atlantic hurricane season began June 1 and ends Nov. 30.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The Briland Modem
<www.briland.com>
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
News and Information for Harbour Island & North Eleuthera, Bahamas
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[It's much better in the Out Islands.]
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Browse The Virtual Briland Marketplace: http://www.cafepress.com/briland
|
IM000781.JPG
IM000781.JPG