Hurricane Warning Issued For USVI As Dorian Soon Makes Landfall

The National Hurricane Center in its 11:000 a.m. advisory issued a hurricane warning for the U.S. Virgin Islands as residents brace for Dorian’s landfall.

A Hurricane Warning means that hurricane conditions are expected somewhere within the warning area, in this case within the next 12 hours.

According to the National Hurricane Center, the center of Tropical Storm Dorian was located near latitude 17.5 North, longitude 64.5 West. Dorian is moving toward the northwest near 13 mph (20 km/h), and this motion is expected to continue for the next day or two. On this track, Dorian should move near the U.S. and British Virgin Islands and then continue over the open Atlantic well east of the southeastern Bahamas.

Maximum sustained winds have increased to near 70 mph (110 km/h) with higher gusts. Dorian is forecast to become a hurricane later today and continue strengthening during the next few days over the Atlantic waters. Tropical-storm-force winds extend outward up to 80 miles (130 km) primarily to the east of the center.

An Air Force plane just estimated a minimum central pressure of 999 mb (29.50 inches).

Rain

Eastern Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and the northwest Bahamas should expect 4 to 6 inches, and in isolated 10 inches of rain

According to the National Hurricane Center, rainfall may cause life-threatening flash floods.

Wind

Hurricane conditions are expected over Vieques, Culebra, and the U.S. and British Virgin Islands today. Tropical storm conditions are expected in Puerto Rico this afternoon and tonight. Tropical storm conditions are still possible in portions of the Dominican Republic tonight and Thursday but are becoming less likely to occur.

Wind speeds atop and on the windward sides of hills and mountains are often up to 30 percent stronger than the near-surface winds indicated in this advisory, and in some elevated locations could be even greater.

Surf

Swells are expected to increase later today across the U.S. and British Virgin Islands and along the southern coasts of Puerto Rico and Hispaniola, and they could cause life-threatening surf and rip current conditions.