5AM THURSDAY UPDATE: Hurricane Irma holds steady as a Category 5 hurricane with 180mph sustained winds and gusts to 220 mph.
THURSDAY'S IRMA UPDATES WILL CONTINUE HERE
The eye of Irma is just north of the eastern portion of the Dominican Republic, moving W/NW at 17 mph toward Turks and Caicos. Hurricane Warnings have now been issued for the Northwestern Bahamas.
Hurricane-force winds extend 50 miles from the center, and Tropical Storm-force winds extend 185 miles from the center.
______________________________________________________________________________
2AM THURSDAY UPDATE: Hurricane Irma remains at a category 5 with maximum sustained winds of 180 mph. The storm is currently moving towards the southeastern Bahamas.
__________________________________________________________________________________
11PM WEDNESDAY UPDATE: Hurricane Irma remains at a category 5 with maximum sustained winds of 185 mph.The eye of the storm is currently moving away from Puerto Rico and heading towards Turks and Caicos. The movement of the storm remains west-northwest at 16 mph.
__________________________________________________________________________________
8PM WEDNESDAY UPDATE: Hurricane Irma remains a category 5 with maximum sustained winds of 185 mph. The eye of the storm is currently passing just north of Puerto Rico. The movement of the storm remains west-northwest at 16 mph.
___________________________________________________________________________________
5PM WEDNESDAY UPDATE: Hurricane Irma remains a category 5 with maximum sustained winds of 185 mph. The eye is passing just north of Puerto Rico with a track near Hispaniola and Cuba expected Thursday and Friday. The movement also hasn't changed, moving west northwest at 16 mph.
____________________________________________________________________________________
2PM WEDNESDAY UPDATE: Hurricane Irma is battering the Virgin Islands and heading near Puerto Rico, with the eye expected to pass just north of the island, and possibly north of Hispaniola as well. So not a lot of weakening is expected as the storm continues to make its way west and northwest, and closer to Florida.
The latest models still have Irma as a powerful hurricane, but the models are shifting east. So the expected impacts on Southwest Florida are decreasing. However, we are still in the cone of uncertainty, so the storm warrants close watching.
Winds remain at 185 mph, with gusts up to 225 mph, moving WNW at 16 mph.
____________________________________________________________________________________
off the coast of South Florida near Miami by Sunday morning as a Category 4 storm.
____________________________________________________________________________________
8AM WEDNESDAY UPDATE: Hurricane Irma is holding steady as a strong Category 5 storm with 185 mph sustained winds. The latest update didn't bring any major changes outside of current location. As of 8AM, Irma was 15 miles west of St. Martin and moving WNW at 16 mph.
The next track update will be available at 11AM.
____________________________________________________________________________________
5AM WEDNESDAY UPDATE: Hurricane Irma is still a very dangerous Category 5 storm with sustained winds of 185 mph and gusts to 225 mph. Pressure is down to 914 mb. Irma is tracking through the northern Leeward Islands this morning with landfall in Barbuda at 1:47 AM, and heading toward St. Martin, St. Barths, and the Virgin Islands later this morning.
The main change in the latest advisory is a shift in the forecast track. Models are indicating the track is trending further east, and the National Hurricane Center indicates that shift with the latest update. As it stands, the window for potential impacts in SWFL is still Saturday-Monday, but the severity of potential impacts is still dependent on Irma's track and how soon it turns north heading into the weekend.
We'll keep you updated with the latest both on-air and online.
---------------------------------------------------
Hurricane Resources >> http://www.fox4now.com/hurricane
Latest news and weather alerts download our apps --http://www.fox4now.com/mobile-apps
Hurricane Supply List >> http://on.fox4now.com/2gFnPiC
