Hurricane Dorian pounds Bahamas as Category 5 with 185 mph winds; Orlando remains in cone as coastal Florida under hurricane watch

Sep. 1--A catastrophic Category 5 Hurricane Dorian pounded the Bahamas with 185 mph sustained winds and gusts over 220 mph after making its first landfall at 12:40 p.m. Sunday at Elbow Cay, Abacos. The path had shifted slightly west earlier Sunday so more of Central Florida is in the cone of uncertainty, and a hurricane watch was added for a roughly 175-mile stretch of Florida's east coast.

At about 2 p.m., Dorian's "extremely distinct eye" made its second landfall on Great Abaco Island near Marsh Harbour as it "headed with all its fury toward Grand Bahama" at a westward clip of 7 mph, the NHC said.

"This is tied for the strongest Atlantic hurricane landfall on record with the 1935 Labor Day hurricane," the NHC said.

The monster storm ripped off roofs and tore down power lines in the Bahamas as hundreds hunkered in schools, churches and other shelters.

Hurricane Dorian grew to be the "strongest hurricane in modern records" for the northwestern Bahamas and is now the second-strongest Atlantic hurricane since 1950, second only to Hurricane Allen in 1980 with its 190 mph winds. Life-threatening hazards, including a possible storm surge 18 to 23 feet above normal tide levels with higher destructive waves, are expected to continue for the Bahamas for several hours.

Earlier Sunday, a hurricane watch was issued for the east coast of Florida from north of Deerfield Beach to the Volusia/Brevard county line. A storm surge watch was also issued from north of Deerfield Beach to the Volusia/Brevard county line.

-- Hurricane Dorian News

When will Hurricane Dorian hit Orlando?

By Richard Tribou

Sep 01, 2019 -- 11:18 AM

"More tropical watches are expected through the day for Central Florida, as we anticipate the worst weather arriving on Tuesday and lingering through early Wednesday," FOX 35 meteorologist Brooks Tomlin said Sunday after the 2 p.m. update.

While the projected consensus path has the storm, whose minimum central pressure fell slightly to 911 mb as of 12:45 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.

As of 2 p.m., Hurricane Dorian was 185 miles west of West Palm Beach after growing larger in size Sunday morning with hurricane-force winds extending outward up to 45 miles from the center and tropical-storm- force winds extending outward up to 140 miles.

-- 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."

Osceola County on Sunday called for an emergency evacuation of the Good Samaritan Society's Kissimmee Village, the retirement community that had $500 million in damage from flooding after Hurricane Irma two years ago.

The forecast calls for the storm to slow down in the next day or two and then gradually shift direction from west to northwest, eventually turning to the northeast to threaten Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina.

The current track, though, keeps the storm within striking distance of Florida's east coast, projected to be a Category 4 hurricane with sustained 140 mph winds and 165 mph gusts off the coast of Palm Beach County by late Monday, and then begin its shift to the northwest skirting the coast adjacent to Brevard County all day Tuesday so it's off Cape Canaveral by 2 a.m. Wednesday as a Category 3 hurricane with 115 mph sustained winds.

The hurricane center warned of battering waves and significant water runup along the coast, damaging winds and flooding rain.

Bahamas: 'We have no more time available'

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.

In the northern stretches of the Bahamas archipelago, hotels closed, residents boarded up homes and officials hired boats to move people from low-lying areas to bigger islands as Dorian approached.

Bahamas Prime Minister Hubert Minnis warned that Dorian is a "dangerous storm" and said any "who do not evacuate are placing themselves in extreme danger and can expect a catastrophic consequence."

Kwasi Thompson, minister of state for Grand Bahama island, said the government was providing last-minute transportation for people in certain communities.

"Please, please heed the warning," he said. "We have no more time available."

Officials said dozens of people were ignoring evacuation orders, and they were warned that they were placing their lives in danger.

"The end could be fatal," said Samuel Butler, assistant police commissioner. "We ask you, we beg you, we plead with you to get to a place of safety."

Florida prepares

Gov. Ron DeSantis' warnings to residents about Hurricane Dorian grew more urgent Sunday, as the storm grew to a Category 5, with sustained winds of 185 mph.

DeSantis 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).

In addition to President 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.

In Palm Beach County, an evacuation order was issued for barrier islands, mobile homes and areas that are prone to flood beginning 1 p.m. Sunday after the county was placed under the tropical storm warning. A mandatory evacuation order was also issued for coastal areas of Martin County.

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.

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 shelters.

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."

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

Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings said he's not taking any chances despite the fluctuating forecast.

"We are cautiously optimistic based upon the most recent track of the storm," Demings said during an update Saturday outside the Emergency Operations Center in Winter Park. "However, we still have the responsibility to ensure that, should the storm track change, we are ready and prepared to deal with whatever the impacts may be in Central Florida here."

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.

On Friday, every Central Florida school system canceled classes for Tuesday, as did area colleges and universities.

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.

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

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