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Hurricane WILMA


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HURRICANE WILMA INTERMEDIATE ADVISORY NUMBER  34A
NWS TPC/NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER MIAMI FL
8 PM EDT SUN OCT 23 2005
 
...WILMA GETTING BETTER ORGANIZED AND STRENGTHENING AS IT 
   GRADUALLY ACCELERATES NORTHEASTWARD TOWARD FLORIDA...
...TROPICAL STORM-FORCE WINDS IMPACTING WESTERN CUBA AND 
   APPROACHING THE LOWER FLORIDA KEYS...
 
A HURRICANE WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR ALL OF THE FLORIDA
KEYS...INCLUDING THE DRY TORTUGAS AND FLORIDA BAY...ALONG THE
FLORIDA WEST COAST FROM LONGBOAT KEY SOUTHWARD...AND ALONG THE
FLORIDA EAST COAST FROM TITUSVILLE SOUTHWARD...INCLUDING LAKE
OKEECHOBEE.
 
A TROPICAL STORM WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT ALONG THE FLORIDA WEST
COAST NORTH OF LONGBOAT KEY TO STEINHATCHEE RIVER...AND ALONG THE
FLORIDA EAST COAST NORTH OF TITUSVILLE TO FLAGLER BEACH.
 
A TROPICAL STORM WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT ALONG THE EAST COAST OF
FLORIDA FROM NORTH OF FLAGLER BEACH TO FERNANDINA BEACH.

A HURRICANE WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR THE CUBAN PROVINCES OF
CIUDAD DE LA HABANA...LA HABANA...AND PINAR DEL RIO.  A TROPICAL
STORM WARNING IS IN EFFECT FOR THE ISLE OF YOUTH.  A HURRICANE
WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR THE PROVINCE OF MATANZAS.
 
A HURRICANE WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR THE NORTHWESTERN
BAHAMAS...INCLUDING THE ABACOS...ANDROS ISLAND...BERRY ISLANDS...
BIMINI...ELEUTHERA...GRAND BAHAMA ISLAND...AND NEW PROVIDENCE.
 
FOR STORM INFORMATION SPECIFIC TO YOUR AREA...INCLUDING POSSIBLE
INLAND WATCHES AND WARNINGS...PLEASE MONITOR PRODUCTS ISSUED
BY YOUR LOCAL WEATHER OFFICE.
 
AT 8 PM CDT...0000Z... DATA FROM AN AIR FORCE RESERVE HURRICANE
HUNTER AIRCRAFT... NOAA DOPPLER RADARS... AND SATELLITE IMAGES
INDICATE THE CENTER OF THE LARGE EYE OF HURRICANE WILMA WAS LOCATED
NEAR LATITUDE 23.9 NORTH... LONGITUDE 84.4 WEST OR ABOUT 170
MILES... 275 KM... WEST-SOUTHWEST OF KEY WEST FLORIDA AND ABOUT 
225 MILES... 365 KM...SOUTHWEST OF THE SOUTHWESTERN COAST OF THE
FLORIDA PENINSULA.
 
WILMA IS MOVING TOWARD THE NORTHEAST NEAR 15 MPH...24 KM/HR.  A
CONTINUED NORTHEASTWARD MOTION... WITH A GRADUAL INCREASE IN FORWARD
SPEED... IS EXPECTED TONIGHT AND MONDAY.  ON THIS TRACK...THE CENTER
OF WILMA IS FORECAST TO BE NEAR THE SOUTHWESTERN COAST OF THE
FLORIDA PENINSULA EARLY MONDAY MORNING.  HOWEVER...WILMA IS A LARGE
SYSTEM AND TROPICAL STORM FORCE WINDS WILL REACH THE FLORIDA KEYS
AND FLORIDA PENINSULA WELL BEFORE THE EYE MAKES LANDFALL.
 
DATA FROM AIR FORCE AND NOAA HURRICANE HUNTER AIRCRAFT THIS EVENING
INDICATE MAXIMUM SUSTAINED WINDS HAVE NOW INCREASED TO NEAR 110
MPH...175 KM/HR...WITH HIGHER GUSTS.  WILMA IS A STRONG CATEGORY
TWO HURRICANE ON THE SAFFIR-SIMPSON SCALE.  ADDITIONAL
STRENGTHENING IS POSSIBLE TONIGHT AND EARLY MONDAY... AND WILMA
COULD BE NEAR CATEGORY THREE...MAJOR HURRICANE... STRENGTH AS IT
NEARS THE SOUTHWESTERN FLORIDA COAST MONDAY MORNING.
 
HURRICANE FORCE WINDS EXTEND OUTWARD UP TO  85 MILES...140 KM...
FROM THE CENTER...AND TROPICAL STORM FORCE WINDS EXTEND OUTWARD UP
TO 230 MILES...370 KM.  A WIND GUST TO 85 MPH WAS RECENTLY REPORTED
IN HAVANA CUBA... AND A GUST TO 55 MPH WAS REPORTED AT DRY
TORTUGAS.  SUSTAINED TROPICAL STORM FORCE WINDS ARE OCCURRING OVER
THE YUCATAN CHANNEL AND WESTERN CUBA... AND THESE WINDS SHOULD
REACH THE LOWER FLORIDA KEYS BY MIDNIGHT... AND SPREAD EASTWARD TO
THE MIDDLE KEYS AND THE SOUTHWEST FLORIDA COAST BY SUNRISE MONDAY
MORNING.
 
THE MINIMUM CENTRAL PRESSURE RECENTLY REPORTED BY AN AIR FORCE
RESERVE UNIT HURRICANE HUNTER AIRCRAFT IS ESTIMATED TO BE
958 MB...28.29 INCHES.
 
STORM SURGE FLOODING OF 9 TO 17 FT ABOVE NORMAL TIDE LEVELS IS
POSSIBLE ALONG THE SOUTHWEST FLORIDA COAST NEAR AND TO THE
SOUTH OF WHERE THE CENTER OF WILMA MAKES LANDFALL.  STORM SURGE
FLOODING OF 5 TO 8 FT ABOVE NORMAL IS POSSIBLE IN THE FLORIDA KEYS
AND FLORIDA BAY...AS WELL AS IN LAKE OKEECHOBEE.  STORM SURGE
FLOODING OF 2 TO 4 FEET IS POSSIBLE ALONG THE EXTREME SOUTHEASTERN
COAST OF FLORIDA.
 
WILMA IS EXPECTED TO PRODUCE ADDITIONAL RAINFALL ACCUMULATIONS 
OF 10 TO 15 INCHES THROUGH MONDAY ACROSS PORTIONS OF WESTERN CUBA...
AND 1 TO 2 INCHES ACROSS THE NORTHEASTERN YUCATAN PENINSULA... WITH
ISOLATED MAXIMUM STORM TOTAL AMOUNTS APPROACHING 50 INCHES.
RAINFALL ACROSS SOUTHERN FLORIDA... INCLUDING THE KEYS... THROUGH
TUESDAY IS EXPECTED TO BE 4 TO 8 INCHES... WITH ISOLATED MAXIMUM
AMOUNTS OF 12 INCHES POSSIBLE.
 
LARGE SWELLS GENERATED BY WILMA WILL CONTINUE TO AFFECT PORTIONS OF
THE NORTHEASTERN GULF COAST FROM THE FLORIDA KEYS NORTHWARD TONIGHT
AND EARLY MONDAY.
 
ISOLATED TORNADOES ARE POSSIBLE OVER THE CENTRAL AND SOUTHERN
FLORIDA PENINSULA AND THE FLORIDA KEYS TONIGHT AND MONDAY.
 
REPEATING THE 8 PM EDT POSITION...23.9 N... 84.4 W.  MOVEMENT
TOWARD...NORTHEAST NEAR 15 MPH.  MAXIMUM SUSTAINED
WINDS...110 MPH.  MINIMUM CENTRAL PRESSURE... 958 MB.
 
HOURLY TROPICAL CYCLONE POSITION ESTIMATES WILL BE ISSUED BEGINNING
AT 9 PM EDT.  THE NEXT COMPLETE ADVISORY WILL BE ISSUED BY THE
NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER AT 11 PM EDT.
 
FORECASTER STEWART

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