A man runs toward shelter in Poza Rica during the passing of Hurricane Dean in Veracruz, Mexico, on Aug. 22. Dean is the strongest hurricane to hit land in the Atlantic region since 1988, forecasters said. (AP/Alexandre Meneghini)
Posted on 09/02/2007 8:00:46 PM PDT by MindBender26
ORANJESTAD, Aruba - Hurricane Felix strengthened into a dangerous Category 5 storm Sunday and churned its way into the open waters of the Caribbean Sea after toppling trees and flooding some homes on a cluster of Dutch islands.
The National Hurricane Center in Miami said Felix was packing maximum sustained winds of 165 mph as it plowed westward toward Central America, where it was expected to skirt Honduras' coastline Tuesday before slamming into Belize on Wednesday as a hurricane capable of massive destruction.
Felix became the second Atlantic hurricane of the season on Saturday evening, following Hurricane Dean, which left at least 20 dead in the Caribbean and carved out a destructive swath that stretched from St. Lucia to Mexico.
At 8 p.m. EDT, the storm was centered about 390 miles southeast of Jamaica and was moving west-northwest at about 18 mph, the hurricane center said.
On Saturday, Felix brought heavy rains and strong winds to Grenada as a tropical storm, ripping roofs off at least two homes and destroying a popular concert venue. No injuries were reported and the Grenadian government was still assessing the damage Sunday.
(Excerpt) Read more at sun-sentinel.com ...
NHC in Miami also reports last hurricane hunter a/c found sustained winds at 165, surface gusts to 200.
As a reference, at 140 mph, raindrops break and spall reenforced concrete!
Wow, that didn’t take long! From a tropical storm to a cat 5 in one day.
See original Felix the Cat 5 thread: ‘http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1889824/posts';
I have a friend who lives close to the beach in Belize, I have not been able to contact him since Dean passed through.
I pray he and his family are OK, I cannot imagine what they are facing now.
2000 of the 290,000 population were left homeless by Dean, lord knows what Felix will do, please pray for them all.
weatherunderground is showing it to remain a 5 until landfall. Usually if fluctuates some, if only from daytime heating and cooling. IT looks like it’s doing the exact same thing Dean did.
Those poor people that live there. One is bad enough, but to get hit twice in such a short amount of time is unreal. And there’s another tropical disturbance behind that over the Atlantic that is predicted to take much the same path.
A Cat 5 in Belieze will temporarily erease human civilization.
Interesting we’ve had two cat 5s take a southern track into the Caribbean. And now another hurricane, ultimate strength unknown, about to do the same. Probably of no significance, statistically speaking, but I’m sure the tinfoil hat, global warming crowd will come up with something.
I hope not. Those poor folks in Belize wouldn’t stand a chance. BTW, some of your US National Guard soldiers built a little community center there during the ‘90s.
Your link looks bad.
Your link looks bad.
You are correct. This one works:
“ http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1889824/posts “
Oh, don’t say that. Most of my family is in Belize. Many of them live inland, though. They’re still cleaning up after Dean, dang.
A man runs toward shelter in Poza Rica during the passing of Hurricane Dean in Veracruz, Mexico, on Aug. 22. Dean is the strongest hurricane to hit land in the Atlantic region since 1988, forecasters said. (AP/Alexandre Meneghini)
We had a nasty storm series last winter that had sustained 70MPH winds, with gusts of 100+. I cannot imagine what a class 5 hurricane is like. We lost thousands of acres of trees, and a few homes.
All I can say is that I pray harder now than before. And that’s wrong, but I know that too.
at 200 mph, nothing stands.
About the only things that can survive are completely underground shelters, or shelters above ground built of solid concrete, with earth walls built up at no more than 20 degree angle with grass well embedded into dirt..
or of course, a nuc sub 150 feet below it. Quiet as a church.
Methinks you'd want it at 450 feet.
My understanding is that measurements are so much better now versus what was available in the past via surface readings and the occational hurricane hunter fly-through.
When waves can reach +100ft, I think you'll get tossed around at -150ft.
Belize is prepared. They had a hurricane in the 60s which destroyed their capital, which was then on the coast. They built a new capital in the geographic center of the country and strengthened up their coastline.
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