Hurricane Dorian pounding Bahamas, still expected to come ‘dangerously close’ to Florida’s east coast

Sep. 2--Hurricane Dorian, packing catastrophic Category 5 winds, was pounding the Bahamas on Sunday night as Floridians continued to wait anxiously for the storm to make a turn to the north and avoid a direct hit on the Sunshine State. But that turn is not guaranteed and the state can not drop its guard, hurricane forecasters said.

In its 8 p.m. Sunday update, the National Hurricane Center said Hurricane Dorian still had maximum sustained winds of 185 mph with higher gusts. The storm was about 75 miles east of Freeport Grand Bahama and about 155 miles east of West Palm Beach.

Hurricane-force winds extend outward up to 45 miles from the storm's center and tropical-storm-force winds extend outward up to 140 miles. The hurricane center said.

"A slower westward to west-northwestward motion is forecast during the next day or two, followed by a gradual turn toward the northwest," forecasters said. "On this track, the core of extremely dangerous Hurricane Dorian will continue to pound Great Abaco and Grand Bahama islands tonight and Monday. The hurricane will move dangerously close to the Florida east coast late Monday through Tuesday night."

They also noted, "A small deviation to the left of the track could bring the intense core of the hurricane its dangerous winds closer to or onto the Florida coast."

A hurricane warning was issued for Jupiter Inlet to the Volusia/Brevard county line, and a hurricane watch was issued from the Volusia/Brevard county line to the Flagler/Volusia county line. Most of Central Florida's inland counties were under a Tropical Storm watch as as 8 p.m. Sunday.

Dorian has slowed, now moving west at just 5 mph as it batters the Bahamas. Central Florida is not projected to take a direct hit but could begin to see residual impact from the slow-moving storm Tuesday morning, according to the National Weather Service in Melbourne.

"Dorian will be nearly stationary early tomorrow [Monday], but then begin to move northwest late evening and overnight, WOFL Fox 35 chief meteorologist Glenn Richards said Sunday night.

"Dorian is still expect to pass offshore of our east coast by 50-80 miles which will keep the damaging winds offshore. However we still expect 20-40 mph winds inland with higher gusts and 40-60 mph winds along the coast with higher gusts."

-- Hurricane Dorian News

Hurricane Dorian impact: Here's what to expect in Central Florida

By Lisa Maria Garza and Roger Simmons

Sep 01, 2019 -- 4:29 PM

Dorian made its first landfall at 12:40 p.m. Sunday at Elbow Cay, Abaco, and then its "extremely distinct eye" made second landfall at about 2 p.m. on Great Abaco Island near Marsh Harbour as it "headed with all its fury toward Grand Bahama" at a westward clip of 7 mph as of the 5 p.m. update, the National Hurricane Center said.

The monster storm, tied for the strongest Atlantic hurricane landfall on record with the 1935 Labor Day hurricane, ripped off roofs, overturned cars and tore down power lines in the Bahamas as hundreds hunkered in schools, churches and other shelters in the Bahamas.

"It's devastating," said Joy Jibrilu, director general of the Bahamas' Ministry of Tourism and Aviation. "There has been huge damage to property and infrastructure. Luckily, no loss of life reported."

Silbert Mills, owner of the Bahamas Christian Network, said trees and power lines were torn down in the Abaco Islands and some roads were impassable.

"The winds are howling like we've never, ever experienced before," said Mills, 59, who planned to ride out the hurricane with his family in the concrete home he built 41 years ago in central Abaco.

Before landfall Sunday in the Bahamas, authorities made a last-minute plea for those in low-lying areas to evacuate before it's too late.

Hundreds of people were hunkered down in schools, churches and other shelters as officials recognized there were not many structures on higher ground on the largely flat archipelago just southeast of Florida. Power and water outages were reported, with crews working in some communities as authorities warned that all government workers will remain indoors once winds reach 40 mph.

Florida Gov. DeSantis' warnings to Floridians about Hurricane Dorian grew more dire Sunday, as he also ordered the suspension of tolls.

"It's important for people to understand if you're in an evacuation zone and you're given an order to evacuate, please heed that call," DeSantis said during a briefing at the state Emergency Operations Center. "This storm at this magnitude could really cause massive destruction, and do not put your life in jeopardy by staying behind when you have a chance to get out. "While the projected consensus path has the storm, whose minimum central pressure fell again slightly to 910 mb as of 5 p.m., staying offshore, the three-day cone of uncertainty jogged somewhat more inland overnight to now include all of metro Orlando including Walt Disney World.

DeSantis on Sunday afternoon ordered the suspension of all tolls, effective immediately, along State Road 528 (the BeachLine Expressway), Alligator Alley, the Sawgrass Expressway (State Road 869) and Florida's Turnpike, including the Homestead Extension (State Road 821).

DeSantis also received a request from Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings to suspend tolls along State Road 408, 417 and 429, which he approved. Read more about toll suspensions here.

President Trump urged residents in Dorian's potential path to obey all warnings and evacuation orders from local authorities, saying public safety "must always come first." He said he and members of his staff are receiving frequent updates on the "monstrous" storm "to ensure that we are fully prepared. And we are fully prepared."

In addition to Trump, DeSantis had calls with the governors of Georgia and South Carolina on Saturday, as well as local government officials, legislators and NASA administrator Jim Bridenstine.

South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster ordered a mandatory evacuation of the entire coast of the state amid Dorian's expected threat to his state. The order, which covers about 830,000 people, goes into effect at noon Monday, when state troopers will begin reversing lanes so they all head inland on major coastal highways.

"We can't make everybody happy," McMaster said. "But we believe we can keep everyone alive."

-- Hurricane Dorian News

Hurricane Dorian: Live updates from around Florida

By Richard Tribou, Todd Stewart, Ricky Pinela, Tiffini Theisen, Mark Skoneki, Kathleen Christiansen and Lynnette Cantos

Aug 31, 2019 -- 9:52 AM

"Florida still falls within the cone of uncertainty & this monstrous storm can change course at any time," Sen. Rick Scott said on Twitter midday Sunday. "Floridians MUST stay vigilant & informed. It's far better to be over-prepared than under-prepared."

The hurricane upended some Labor Day holiday weekend plans in the U.S.: Major airlines allowed travelers to change reservations without fees, big cruise lines rerouted their ships and Cumberland Island National Seashore off Georgia closed to visitors. Disney World and Orlando's other resorts held off announcing any closings.

The path has shifted several times since Thursday with projected landfalls suggesting it would slam into Florida as far south as West Palm Beach and as far north as Flagler Beach. Its path all day Friday had it targeting Orlando, but the various computer models kept shifting the path farther east.

Saturday's overall shift in where the storm was predicted to go, though, had some dialing back their levels of alert.

-- Hurricane Dorian News

Hurricane Dorian doesn't deter Disney, Universal visitors

By Trevor Fraser

Sep 01, 2019 -- 4:05 PM

Eleven shelters opened Sunday at 8 a.m. and Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings said he expects residents from coastal communities in Brevard and Volusia counties to seek safety in those facilities.

Orlando International Airport, which had previously planned to close at 2 a.m. Monday, changed course and now plans to remain open while officials keep an eye on the storm, according to a statement. Orlando Sanford International Airport said it is lifting its previously planned closure at midnight Sunday and "will continue normal operations until further notice."

Parking fees will be waived in downtown Orlando garages starting at noon Monday for those looking for an alternative place to park their vehicles.

The Orlando Utilities Commission warned Sunday afternoon that power outages are "likely" in Orange and Osceola counties.

-- Hurricane Dorian News

Hurricane Dorian wrecks Labor Day break at Cocoa Beach and Cape Canaveral

By Kevin Spear

Sep 01, 2019 -- 3:24 PM

SunRail still plans to be shut down through Friday, and Amtrak has canceled multiple trains through Tuesday. Lynx hasn't announced any cancellations, but its buses will not run in sustained winds of 35 mph or more.

Brevard County is set to begin mandatory evacuations from its barrier islands on Monday, DeSantis said, and other counties will have voluntary or partial evacuations, including Osceola, Martin, Glades and Hendry counties. But as the forecast tracks shift, evacuation orders may change, DeSantis said.

-- Hurricane Dorian News

Hurricane Dorian's path causes class shuffling, closures at area colleges

By Marco Santana

Sep 01, 2019 -- 5:29 PM

On Friday, every Central Florida school system canceled classes for Tuesday, as did area colleges and universities. UCF said Sunday that it will remain closed through Wednesday.

The Orlando VA Healthcare System is cancelling all appointments for Tuesday at its outpatient clinics in Viera, Daytona Beach, Lake Baldwin, Lake Nona, Deltona, Clermont, Tavares, and Kissimmee. All outpatient clinic appointments will also be cancelled at the Daytona Beach and Viera clinics on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, forecasters were watching two disturbances in the Atlantic and one in the Gulf of Mexico.

Staff writers Lisa Maria Garza, Tess Sheets, Dave Harris, Stephen Hudak, Roger Simmons, Matt Palm, Cristobal Reyes, Ryan Gillespie, Naseem Miller and The Associated Press contributed to this story.

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