Posted on 07/15/2005 11:32:12 PM PDT by Crackingham
Hurricane Emily regained dangerous Category 4 strength, frightening storm-weary islanders in Jamaica and Cayman Islands who eyed ravages it wrought as a low-level storm on Grenada. Many rushed to buy emergency supplies as officials urged them to evacuate coastal and flood-prone areas. Mexican officials recommended Friday evacuating tourists from much of the country's Caribbean coast, including Cancun and the island resorts of Cozumel and Isla Mujeres.
Grenada declared a national disaster Friday, the day after Emily's 90-mph (144-kph) winds tore down at least 100 homes, blasted out windows, sheared off roofs and flooded two hospitals and scores of other buildings. At least one person was killed, when his home was buried under a landslide.
Emily's winds strengthened to 135 mph (217 kph) with higher gusts Friday morning, making it "a very rare Category 4 hurricane in the Caribbean Sea in the month of July," said Stacy Stewart, a meteorologist with the U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami. Then it weakened to 105 mph (168 kph), raising hopes, before it regained strength.
The second major hurricane of the Atlantic season came unusually early and made its presence felt from hundreds of miles (kilometers) away, unleashing heavy surf, gusty winds and torrential rains on both sides of the Caribbean sea.
Heavy rains drenched the southeast Dominican Republic, and officials warned boatmen to stay in port, saying that coastline could expect strong electrical storms, whipping winds and waves higher than 10 feet (three meters) as the hurricane passed Friday night an expected 200 miles (320 kilometers) and more to the south.
Emily's next direct hit, according to the hurricane center's projections, will be Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula on Sunday night. If it continues on the same path, it will travel across the Gulf of Mexico and make landfall again Wednesday somewhere near the U.S.-Mexico border, the hurricane center said.
They sure need to evacuate Cancun and Cozumel if the storm is aiming to make a direct hit.
I suppose this means my tax money is going to be used to rebuild parts of Mexico.
Forgive me if I sound uncharitable. I'm not in a charitable mood these days.
More info here, too. . .
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1442448/posts
Hurricane Emily is @ 700 miles from the outer islands of Mexico, and I am surprise that no high waves/storm surge watch /warnings are not issued yet ? This is one of the gateway to the gulf, maybe it would be a good and safe idea to issue warnings this afternoon? I think Cozumel is where Emily will hit first within 30 hours (+/-) with far outer bands effecting this region within 24 hours?
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