#6228 Postby jasons2k » Wed Sep 06, 2017 10:46 pm
I have not had time to post much as I am on information intake overload tonight, and I've been texting a lot of folks down in Florida about this.
The NHC track, or very close to it, looks good to me. A well-respected met I know believes Irma will make a run for Sub-900 in the FL Straits, but the winds will decrease slightly as Irma expands in size and is affected by some shear just prior to landfall. At this point, probably splitting hairs in terms of landfall intensity. It be a very large hurricane with far-reaching impacts. The size and angle of approach will make the surge worse than Andrew.
I'm deathly afraid SE Florida is about to get raked over the coals. If I lived in Monroe, Miami-Dade, or Broward, I would leave. Period. I would have left already. I'm hearing horror stories from friends taking 7 hours to get to Orlando and not able to find any gas to continue.
So prayers for my friends down there. I am cautiously optimistic my family in the bay area will be OK, with Irma just far enough east to spare them major impacts.
I'm pretty nervous about what's gonna happen to the Sea Islands and the Low Country. I lived on Wilmington Island for four years in the 80's (yes, it does exist). Beautiful place with lots of huge live oaks everywhere. I guess the saving grace is the NHC forecast no longer has it as a major at that latitude.
I've spent the night warning everyone I can. Again, if you live in Monroe, Miami-Dade, or Broward, you should leave unless you are emergency personnel with a safe shelter or have a life-or-death reason to stick around. This is not a storm or situation to play around with, storm chase, or sight-see.
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