8:14 PM Tuesday Oct 18 2005
Hurricane Wilma continues to explosively strengthen over the warm waters of the Caribbean. The storm will reach Category 3 strength early Wednesday and should become a Category 4 hurricane by the end of Wednesday.
It is not out of the question that Wilma reaches Category 5 strength some time Wednesday or Thursday, which would set a new record for the most Category 5 hurricanes in a single year. The AccuWeather.com forecasted track of Wilma shows the storm becoming a serious threat to Florida this weekend. Deviations in the path are still possible, but currently we feel southern and central Florida will experience the full fury of the storm.
When the storm makes landfall this weekend, the west coast of Florida somewhere between Tampa and the Keys could be pounded by winds over 100 mph and a destructive storm surge. Torrential rain brought by the storm will be widespread across a large portion of the state.
Story by AccuWeather.com expert senior meteorologists John Kocet and Ray Martin.