Hurricane Dean and good luck

[Dr. Jack]

It looks like it might be a big one

Best wishes to all

[Hoosiercatdaddy]

they say this one could force everyone back to New Orleans

[Dr. Jack]

Dean becomes a hurricane, aims for south of Cuba

By Ken Kaye

South Florida Sun-Sentinel

10:22 AM EDT, August 16, 2007
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Now forecast to mushroom into a Category 4 with 135 mph sustained winds, Dean became a hurricane early Thursday and was still in position to easily attack the U.S. East Coast as it plowed west across the Atlantic.

On the other hand, the forecast track was being steadily adjusted to the south, and the storm was predicted to pass south of Cuba. If so, it would remain about 500 miles from Florida.

Those projections could change. Forecasters were growing more confident, however, that a high-pressure area north of Dean's forward track would keep the storm on a westerly course and prevent a northward turn toward Florida.

"The models are very consistent about taking it into the eastern Caribbean," said hurricane specialist Eric Blake of the National Hurricane Center in Miami-Dade County.

A hurricane warning was issued early Thursday for the islands of Dominica and St. Lucia, and a hurricane watch was issued for the islands of Martinique, Guadeloupe and its dependencies, Saba and St. Eustatius. A Tropical Storm Warning remains in effect for Barbados.

At 8:30 a.m. Thursday, Dean was about 415 miles east of Barbados, churning westward at 24 mph with maximum sustained winds of 80 mph and significantly higher gusts. It is a Category 1 hurricane. A tropical storm watch has been issued for the islands of Montserrat, Antigua, St. Kitts, Nevis, Barbuda and Grenada and its dependencies. A tropical storm watch remains in effect for St. Vincent and St. Maarten.

If the latest prediction holds true, most of the Caribbean could be in Dean's path.

The system was expected to move through the Windward Islands on Friday, south of the Dominican Republic and Haiti on Saturday and just south of Jamaica on Sunday.

From there, Dean was expected to bulk up to Category 4 strength and aim toward Mexico's Yucatan or into the Gulf of Mexico.

If it makes it into the Gulf, it could pose a threat to any of the Gulf states, including Florida's western coast and Panhandle, said Rebecca Waddington, a meteorologist with the hurricane center. She also said it could grow to Category 5, with sustained winds of at least 155 mph.

"As of right now, we don't have that in our forecast," she said. "But there's a decrease in wind shear as it moves through the Caribbean."

Initially, long-range forecasts had pointed Dean in the general direction of South Florida. That was because models predicted a trough of low pressure would weaken the high-pressure ridge and allow Dean to slide northwest.

"Now, they're not forecasting as much interaction between the trough and the ridge," Blake said. "Consequently, they're forecasting Dean to move faster and more to the south."

At 8 a.m. Thursday, Erin was downgraded to a tropical depression as it made landfall on the Texas coast with 35 mph winds. The center of the storm was about 25 miles northeast of Corpus Christi. Rain of three to six inches, with 10 inches in isolated areas, was predicted.

Emergency officials urged residents of flood-prone areas to evacuate. High tides were predicted to be about 3 feet above normal levels and could wash away dunes and highways near the shoreline.

Texas Gov. Rick Perry dispatched National Guard personnel and vehicles to south Texas.

"Because storms have saturated much of our state this summer, many communities in this storm's projected path are at high risk of dangerous flash flooding," he said.

With the storm's rain bands reaching the coast on Wednesday, homeowners headed to hardware stores for supplies to board up their houses.

"They know the drill, they're familiar with it," said Ruben Dimas, assistant store manager at a Home Depot in Harlingen.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

[Dr. Jack]

Originally Posted by Hoosiercatdaddy

they say this one could force everyone back to New Orleans

Someone will get it hard. The are saying it could make it to Category 5.

[Bozzie]

Worked in biloxi MS a few days after katrina..
Amazing damage and suffering... till then i had no idea of the power of mother nature. I'm still 2 years after the fact not sure about what i saw or how i feel about it.... seems like a f*cked up dream, changed my life and my views on the word loss.