Hurricane Irene Strengthens

[Chatsie]

A strengthening Hurricane Irene has swept over the northern Dominican Republic, bringing strong winds and heavy downpours.



The storm, the first hurricane of the Atlantic season, had maximum sustained winds of 160km (100 mph).



Forecasters say Irene is set to intensify further as it heads north-west towards the Turks and Caicos Islands and the Bahamas.



The storm is forecast to reach the south-eastern US by the weekend.



At 06:00GMT, Irene, now classed as a category two hurricane, was 110km (70 miles) east-north-east of Puerto Plata in the Dominican Republic, the US National Hurricane Center (NHC) in Miami said.





The hurricane is expected to be near the Turks and Caicos Islands and the south-eastern Bahamas by Tuesday night, forecasters said.



Irene was likely to strengthen further and could become a major hurricane within the next 72 hours as it moves over the warm sea waters.



We didn't anticipate it gaining this much strength this early, meteorologist Chris Landsea told the Associated Press.





Full Story - http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-14625665

 

[DrLeftover]

And it continues to turn north and east off the initial path that the weather service had going through Miami.

 

[Jazzy]

*Update*



Predictions by the U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami said Irene was likely to become a major Category 3 hurricane Tuesday. By Thursday as it roars toward the U.S. coast over warm open waters, it could become a Category 4, NHC hurricane specialist John Cangialosi said late Monday. Winds in such a storm can blow from 131 to 155 mph (210-249 kph).



For now, the first Atlantic hurricane of the season had maximum sustained winds early Tuesday around 100 mph (160 kph) and it could land in Florida, Georgia or South Carolina. The last hurricane to make landfall in the U.S. was Ike, which pounded Texas in 2008.



Source: http://www.aolnews.com/story/hurricane-irene-marks-1st-big-us-threat/1907957/

 

[DrLeftover]

The raw satellite image is pretty cool,



http://www.ssd.noaa.gov/goes/flt/t2/flash-avn.html





The National Hurricane Center

http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/

 

[Headliner]

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