DDuckFan130
Well-Known Member
Hang in there! I'll say a little prayer for you :wave:Maria said:
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Wilma?
- Thread starter pinkrose
- Start date
SpongeScott
Well-Known Member
and I'll say a BIG one.DDuckFan130 said:
Badger Brent
Active Member
I've been to Cozumel before. From what I remember about the island was how flat it was. A storm surge of what they are saying scares the crap out of me. Stay safe to all people that may be in the path of Wilma. Maria,do you live near the coast line? Just wondering if everyone heads for higher ground? I know it's seems like a dense question, but seeing what happened in New Orleans and how people thought it wouldn't "happen to me". I would rather all stay safe and get out if you can. Stay safe wdwmagic forum members...
Tim G
Well-Known Member
Bush Urges Preparation As Wilma Slows But Threatens Florida
KEY WEST, Fla. Hurricane Wilma's march toward Florida slowed somewhat Thursday, giving residents an unexpected extra day to make preparations for a possibly major storm. Gov. Jeb Bush declared a state of emergency to ensure that necessary supplies and disaster response teams were in place.
"This is the time to prepare," Bush told reporters in Tallahassee.
Forecasters at the National Hurricane Center said Wilma was expected to hit Florida's western coast, possibly including the low-lying Keys island chain, late Sunday, a day later than previously thought.
The storm was predicted to make a turn to the northeast toward Florida after striking Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula in the western Caribbean Sea. In addition to the Keys, the southwest counties of Collier, Lee and Charlotte were in the center of the storm's predicted path, which could produce a storm surge of 12 to 17 feet, state meteorologist Ben Nelson said.
Max Mayfield, the hurricane center's director, said Wilma's slowdown would likely weaken the storm from a Category 4 now, with sustained 150 mph winds, to a Category 3 or less before U.S. landfall. He said conditions in the Gulf of Mexico were not favorable for storm strengthening.
"The timing is certainly working in our favor," Mayfield said.
But Mayfield added that Wilma would still probably be a strong hurricane with a powerful storm surge when it reached the state. He said Wilma is also unusually large, with tropical storm-force winds extending out some 260 miles from the center that could cause widespread damage.
"Don't just focus on the eye of the hurricane," Mayfield said.
Yesterday at 8 p.m. EDT, forecasters said Wilma was about 120 miles southeast of Cozumel, Mexico, and about 460 miles southwest of Key West. It was heading northwest toward Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula near 5 mph with winds at about 150 mph, forecasters said.
Wilma's center was forecast to be very near the coastline of Yucatan by midday Friday and it could regain Category 5 strength by Friday night, forecasters said.
"As it hits the Yucatan peninsula, it has the potential to do catastrophic damage," Mayfield said. "The thing to do now is to closely monitor the progress of Hurricane Wilma."
Category 5 storms have sustained wind of at least 156 mph, Category 4 storms have 131-155 mph winds and Category 3 storms are between 111-130 mph.
Although Wilma was approaching from the west, forecasters warned that major Atlantic Coast cities including Miami, Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach could be hit by strong winds and heavy rains.
Bush said people in Wilma's possible path should use the extra time "to make decisions about what they will do over the next 72 hours" such as planning to evacuate, stocking up on nonperishable food items and securing homes and businesses. He said the state had food, water, ice and other supplies and disaster response teams ready, including up to 7,500 National Guard personnel.
"We are battle tested, well-resourced, well-trained," Bush said.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency was positioning emergency materials in Jacksonville, Lakeland and Homestead. FEMA acting chief R. David Paulison said the agency has 150 truckloads of ice, 150 truckloads of water and the Red Cross has 200,000 meals available.
KEY WEST, Fla. Hurricane Wilma's march toward Florida slowed somewhat Thursday, giving residents an unexpected extra day to make preparations for a possibly major storm. Gov. Jeb Bush declared a state of emergency to ensure that necessary supplies and disaster response teams were in place.
"This is the time to prepare," Bush told reporters in Tallahassee.
Forecasters at the National Hurricane Center said Wilma was expected to hit Florida's western coast, possibly including the low-lying Keys island chain, late Sunday, a day later than previously thought.
The storm was predicted to make a turn to the northeast toward Florida after striking Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula in the western Caribbean Sea. In addition to the Keys, the southwest counties of Collier, Lee and Charlotte were in the center of the storm's predicted path, which could produce a storm surge of 12 to 17 feet, state meteorologist Ben Nelson said.
Max Mayfield, the hurricane center's director, said Wilma's slowdown would likely weaken the storm from a Category 4 now, with sustained 150 mph winds, to a Category 3 or less before U.S. landfall. He said conditions in the Gulf of Mexico were not favorable for storm strengthening.
"The timing is certainly working in our favor," Mayfield said.
But Mayfield added that Wilma would still probably be a strong hurricane with a powerful storm surge when it reached the state. He said Wilma is also unusually large, with tropical storm-force winds extending out some 260 miles from the center that could cause widespread damage.
"Don't just focus on the eye of the hurricane," Mayfield said.
Yesterday at 8 p.m. EDT, forecasters said Wilma was about 120 miles southeast of Cozumel, Mexico, and about 460 miles southwest of Key West. It was heading northwest toward Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula near 5 mph with winds at about 150 mph, forecasters said.
Wilma's center was forecast to be very near the coastline of Yucatan by midday Friday and it could regain Category 5 strength by Friday night, forecasters said.
"As it hits the Yucatan peninsula, it has the potential to do catastrophic damage," Mayfield said. "The thing to do now is to closely monitor the progress of Hurricane Wilma."
Category 5 storms have sustained wind of at least 156 mph, Category 4 storms have 131-155 mph winds and Category 3 storms are between 111-130 mph.
Although Wilma was approaching from the west, forecasters warned that major Atlantic Coast cities including Miami, Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach could be hit by strong winds and heavy rains.
Bush said people in Wilma's possible path should use the extra time "to make decisions about what they will do over the next 72 hours" such as planning to evacuate, stocking up on nonperishable food items and securing homes and businesses. He said the state had food, water, ice and other supplies and disaster response teams ready, including up to 7,500 National Guard personnel.
"We are battle tested, well-resourced, well-trained," Bush said.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency was positioning emergency materials in Jacksonville, Lakeland and Homestead. FEMA acting chief R. David Paulison said the agency has 150 truckloads of ice, 150 truckloads of water and the Red Cross has 200,000 meals available.
SpongeScott
Well-Known Member
one thing to remember about a storm surge any place other than New Orleans. The water will come in, but will recede. Destruction will still be high with Wilma being a Cat 4 right now, but at least the water will not stay like in New Orleans. Still, this is gonna be very bad down there.Badger Brent said:
CAPTAIN HOOK
Well-Known Member
My thoughts and prayers are with everyone in the Florida area - stay safe.
Tim G
Well-Known Member
Hurricane Wilma's eyewall hits Yucatan
Friday, October 21, 2122 GMT (0522 HKT)
Evacuated tourists sleep under plastic in a Cancun shelter Friday as Hurricane Wilma approaches.
Position of center: over the northeastern end of the island of Cozumel
Top sustained winds: 140 mph (225 kph)
Latitude: 20.6 north
Longitude: 86.9 west
The storm remains at Category 4 intensity, with winds of 140 mph, he said.
As the storm hit Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula, thousands of tourists in its path huddled in shelters and hotels.
At 5 p.m. ET, the Category 4 storm's eyewall was over the island of Cozumel with top winds of 140 mph, the National Hurricane Center said.
On the mainland in Cancun, the roaring wind and pelting rain whipped white beaches and palm trees near oceanfront hotels. (Watch tourists seek shelter from Wilma's brutal winds.
Thousands of visitors and residents in the area's tourism district have evacuated by bus to hotels and shelters farther inland, while many buildings are boarded up in preparation for the coming storm. Airports, ship ports, schools and businesses are all shut down.
The hurricane, crawling toward the northwest at near 5 mph -- is expected to linger over the Yucatan for at least 24 hours.
Wilma may stall over the Yucatan and could weaken and slow down even further as it turns and approaches Florida, according to Max Mayfield, director of the National Hurricane Center in Miami.
"That would obviously be terrible news for Mexico," Mayfield said, "but for the United States' interests it means that we'll have a weaker hurricane coming out into the Gulf of Mexico ... and it will be slower in getting here."
The latest forecast has Wilma making landfall in the United States somewhere in South Florida or the Keys by Monday.
Wilma approached Mexico with about the same strength as Hurricane Katrina, which slammed into Louisiana August 29 as a Category 4 with 140 mph winds, killing more than 1,200 people.
The storm already is blamed for the deaths of at least 13 people in Haiti and Jamaica, The Associated Press reported.
Stranded in Mexico - About 1,500 people were crowded into a dark, sweltering municipal gymnasium in downtown Cancun, AP reported, some taking shelter under plastic tarps because of a leaking ceiling.
"After one more day of this, I believe people will start getting cranky. Things could get messy," Scott Stout, 26, told AP. The resident of Willisville, Illinois, was on a honeymoon with his wife, Jamie, according to AP.
About 20,000 tourists remained at shelters and hotels south of the city, AP reported, and an estimated 10,000 to 12,000 in Cancun itself.
Some, like 30-year-old Carlos Porta of Barcelona, Spain, were handed plastic bags with a pillow and blanket, AP said.
"From a luxury hotel to a shelter. It makes you angry. But what can you do?" he told AP. "It's just bad luck."
Cuban evacuations - Wilma, a 400-mile-wide storm, also was battering western Cuba.
Early Friday, data from Cuba indicated that 20-foot waves were pounding portions of the southern coast of Cuba's Isle of Youth, the hurricane center said.
The storm's eye is expected to near Cuba's western tip early Monday as it heads toward Florida.
Cuban authorities were evacuating 500,000 residents from the island in the nation's westernmost provinces in anticipation of heavy rain and the possibility of mudslides. (See video on Cuba's preparedness -- 2:09)
By Thursday afternoon, more than 222,000 residents had left their homes, many of which are in dire condition after previous hurricanes hit Cuba this year, officials said.
Florida mandatory evacuations delayed - Mandatory evacuations for residents of the Florida Keys have been postponed indefinitely, but Monroe County emergency officials encouraged people on Friday to leave before the only road that connects the island chain to the mainland becomes backed up with traffic. (Full story)
When it becomes clear when Wilma will hit Florida, Monroe County will call for a mandatory evacuation of all residents, authorities said.
Mandatory evacuations for houseboat residents, nonresidents and recreational vehicles were ordered on Wednesday.
Officials said heavy traffic is expected on Florida's major highways as other coastal areas order mandatory evacuations. U.S. 1, the single road connecting the Keys to the rest of Florida, is clear of traffic and gasoline supplies in the Keys are at good levels, officials said Friday.
A shelter was opened Thursday at Florida International University in Miami. Anyone choosing not to stay at the shelter was urged to travel north of Orlando, as hotels and other accommodations in central Florida are beginning to fill up, officials said.
There will be no shelters available in the Keys.
In an effort to speed up the evacuation, authorities have locked down all drawbridges and suspended the tolls on the Card Sound Bridge, which connects mainland Florida with Key Largo.
Schools and all county offices in the Keys are closed Friday and Monroe County courts are closed through Monday.
Wilma would be the seventh hurricane to hit the state in 14 months.
Friday, October 21, 2122 GMT (0522 HKT)
Evacuated tourists sleep under plastic in a Cancun shelter Friday as Hurricane Wilma approaches.
Position of center: over the northeastern end of the island of Cozumel
Top sustained winds: 140 mph (225 kph)
Latitude: 20.6 north
Longitude: 86.9 west
The storm remains at Category 4 intensity, with winds of 140 mph, he said.
As the storm hit Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula, thousands of tourists in its path huddled in shelters and hotels.
At 5 p.m. ET, the Category 4 storm's eyewall was over the island of Cozumel with top winds of 140 mph, the National Hurricane Center said.
On the mainland in Cancun, the roaring wind and pelting rain whipped white beaches and palm trees near oceanfront hotels. (Watch tourists seek shelter from Wilma's brutal winds.
Thousands of visitors and residents in the area's tourism district have evacuated by bus to hotels and shelters farther inland, while many buildings are boarded up in preparation for the coming storm. Airports, ship ports, schools and businesses are all shut down.
The hurricane, crawling toward the northwest at near 5 mph -- is expected to linger over the Yucatan for at least 24 hours.
Wilma may stall over the Yucatan and could weaken and slow down even further as it turns and approaches Florida, according to Max Mayfield, director of the National Hurricane Center in Miami.
"That would obviously be terrible news for Mexico," Mayfield said, "but for the United States' interests it means that we'll have a weaker hurricane coming out into the Gulf of Mexico ... and it will be slower in getting here."
The latest forecast has Wilma making landfall in the United States somewhere in South Florida or the Keys by Monday.
Wilma approached Mexico with about the same strength as Hurricane Katrina, which slammed into Louisiana August 29 as a Category 4 with 140 mph winds, killing more than 1,200 people.
The storm already is blamed for the deaths of at least 13 people in Haiti and Jamaica, The Associated Press reported.
Stranded in Mexico - About 1,500 people were crowded into a dark, sweltering municipal gymnasium in downtown Cancun, AP reported, some taking shelter under plastic tarps because of a leaking ceiling.
"After one more day of this, I believe people will start getting cranky. Things could get messy," Scott Stout, 26, told AP. The resident of Willisville, Illinois, was on a honeymoon with his wife, Jamie, according to AP.
About 20,000 tourists remained at shelters and hotels south of the city, AP reported, and an estimated 10,000 to 12,000 in Cancun itself.
Some, like 30-year-old Carlos Porta of Barcelona, Spain, were handed plastic bags with a pillow and blanket, AP said.
"From a luxury hotel to a shelter. It makes you angry. But what can you do?" he told AP. "It's just bad luck."
Cuban evacuations - Wilma, a 400-mile-wide storm, also was battering western Cuba.
Early Friday, data from Cuba indicated that 20-foot waves were pounding portions of the southern coast of Cuba's Isle of Youth, the hurricane center said.
The storm's eye is expected to near Cuba's western tip early Monday as it heads toward Florida.
Cuban authorities were evacuating 500,000 residents from the island in the nation's westernmost provinces in anticipation of heavy rain and the possibility of mudslides. (See video on Cuba's preparedness -- 2:09)
By Thursday afternoon, more than 222,000 residents had left their homes, many of which are in dire condition after previous hurricanes hit Cuba this year, officials said.
Florida mandatory evacuations delayed - Mandatory evacuations for residents of the Florida Keys have been postponed indefinitely, but Monroe County emergency officials encouraged people on Friday to leave before the only road that connects the island chain to the mainland becomes backed up with traffic. (Full story)
When it becomes clear when Wilma will hit Florida, Monroe County will call for a mandatory evacuation of all residents, authorities said.
Mandatory evacuations for houseboat residents, nonresidents and recreational vehicles were ordered on Wednesday.
Officials said heavy traffic is expected on Florida's major highways as other coastal areas order mandatory evacuations. U.S. 1, the single road connecting the Keys to the rest of Florida, is clear of traffic and gasoline supplies in the Keys are at good levels, officials said Friday.
A shelter was opened Thursday at Florida International University in Miami. Anyone choosing not to stay at the shelter was urged to travel north of Orlando, as hotels and other accommodations in central Florida are beginning to fill up, officials said.
There will be no shelters available in the Keys.
In an effort to speed up the evacuation, authorities have locked down all drawbridges and suspended the tolls on the Card Sound Bridge, which connects mainland Florida with Key Largo.
Schools and all county offices in the Keys are closed Friday and Monroe County courts are closed through Monday.
Wilma would be the seventh hurricane to hit the state in 14 months.
ClemsonTigger
Naturally Grumpy
Maria said:
Maria, please be safe, here's adding another prayer for you. Let us know that you're OK when it passes.
Tim G
Well-Known Member
Local Impact Of Wilma
Hurricane Wilma's forecast track will bring her closer to the west coast of Florida on Monday.
The impact listed below could change significantly if Wilma's track also shifts. This information will be updated frequently as Wilma's probable course becomes more clear.
Hurricane Wilma is still a very intense hurricane with winds of 140mph, and still looks to push into the Gulf this weekend.
Our largest impacts will arrive in the form of heavy rainfall this weekend, and breezy to windy rainfall as the storm approaches.
Rainfall: Rainfall will dominate our weekend forecasts with a 60% to 80% coverage through Sunday, increasing to likely on Monday.
Flood advisories may be required late this weekend as local rain totals could top 3" to 5" by late Sunday, before Wilma moves through Florida.
Tornados: There is a moderate risk of isolated tornadoes ahead of the storm late Sunday and Monday.
Wind: It will become increasingly breezy by Sunday, and by Monday we'll see wind gusts over tropical storm force or possibly higher near the track of the storm.
Wilma will likely make landfall as a Category 2 or strong Category 1 storm with winds around 90-100mph.
Erosion: Erosion should not be a significant concern as the storm is expected to pass through the area fairly quickly, and thus the surf will not have sufficient time to build.
Hurricane Wilma's forecast track will bring her closer to the west coast of Florida on Monday.
The impact listed below could change significantly if Wilma's track also shifts. This information will be updated frequently as Wilma's probable course becomes more clear.
Hurricane Wilma is still a very intense hurricane with winds of 140mph, and still looks to push into the Gulf this weekend.
Our largest impacts will arrive in the form of heavy rainfall this weekend, and breezy to windy rainfall as the storm approaches.
Rainfall: Rainfall will dominate our weekend forecasts with a 60% to 80% coverage through Sunday, increasing to likely on Monday.
Flood advisories may be required late this weekend as local rain totals could top 3" to 5" by late Sunday, before Wilma moves through Florida.
Tornados: There is a moderate risk of isolated tornadoes ahead of the storm late Sunday and Monday.
Wind: It will become increasingly breezy by Sunday, and by Monday we'll see wind gusts over tropical storm force or possibly higher near the track of the storm.
Wilma will likely make landfall as a Category 2 or strong Category 1 storm with winds around 90-100mph.
Erosion: Erosion should not be a significant concern as the storm is expected to pass through the area fairly quickly, and thus the surf will not have sufficient time to build.
Maria
New Member
Thanks for your concerns all of you! I live in Mérida, capital city of Yucatan. We have been having the windgusts and rain since before 6am today, but things are fine here.
Cancun, Cozumel, Playa del Carmen, Isla Mujeres and the Mayan Riviera are another story. We are hoping the damage is not too terrible, but this monster is humongous and the terrible thing of it is that it moves extremely slow so all that area still has 24 - 30 hours MORE of it!!
The news here said that the sea has covered some areas of the hotel zone boulevard in Cancun and joined the lagoon so there is no way to go to the hotel zone. The resorts were evacuated. Some hotels have been damaged - I heard the worst part is in the area between the Marriott and the Hilton and that the Hyatt Regency (the round one) was very damaged too - understandable in that particular case as it is on Punta Cancun and had very little protection to the ocean since hurricane Gilbert washed most of its beach in September 1988.
We are hoping the water will just come and go away in the hotel zone. Downtown Cancun is getting flooded too. My sister is there and we lost contact with her from 6pm when the phone line failed, as well as the cell phones. I have friends in Isla Mujeres and Playa del Carmen that I haven´t been able to contact yet, so I am praying they are all safe.
Cancun, Cozumel, Playa del Carmen, Isla Mujeres and the Mayan Riviera are another story. We are hoping the damage is not too terrible, but this monster is humongous and the terrible thing of it is that it moves extremely slow so all that area still has 24 - 30 hours MORE of it!!
The news here said that the sea has covered some areas of the hotel zone boulevard in Cancun and joined the lagoon so there is no way to go to the hotel zone. The resorts were evacuated. Some hotels have been damaged - I heard the worst part is in the area between the Marriott and the Hilton and that the Hyatt Regency (the round one) was very damaged too - understandable in that particular case as it is on Punta Cancun and had very little protection to the ocean since hurricane Gilbert washed most of its beach in September 1988.
We are hoping the water will just come and go away in the hotel zone. Downtown Cancun is getting flooded too. My sister is there and we lost contact with her from 6pm when the phone line failed, as well as the cell phones. I have friends in Isla Mujeres and Playa del Carmen that I haven´t been able to contact yet, so I am praying they are all safe.
DDuckFan130
Well-Known Member
Maria said:
I'm still praying for you and the ones being affected. Cuidate!