Michael intensifies to Category 4 hurricane as it barrels toward Florida Panhandle
Landfall is just a few hours away.
"Catastrophic Hurricane Michael continues to intensify as it approaches the Florida
Michael is currently a major Category 4 hurricane and may maintain this strength up to landfall. Some fluctuation in strength may occur as the storm reaches the shore at the last minute.
The impact and damage from a Category 4 hurricane is exponentially higher than from a Category 3 hurricane in terms of wind and storm surge flooding from the sea.
"Michael is a historic storm. A Category 4 hurricane has never struck that part of
"Impacts from Hurricane Michael along the Florida
Near and just east of where the eye of Michael makes landfall, between
Download the free AccuWeather app for the latest track forecast and information on Michael's predicted impacts.
Time is running out for those on the coast to evacuate as waters will rise quickly into Wednesday afternoon.
"AccuWeather predicts that Hurricane Michael's total damage and economic impact in the
"In comparison, AccuWeather's final damage and economic impact prediction of
"Michael will also bring the risk of flash flooding across the Carolinas, especially across eastern areas hit hard by
What will coastal impacts from Michael be like?
A significant amount of water will be funneled into
However, locally higher storm surge, between 18 and 20 feet, can occur due to local bay and coastline funneling effects.
Large waves will propagate outward as Michael moves northward. Seas and surf will build, especially over the eastern
Moderate impacts from coastal flooding can occur south of
Most petroleum rigs are west of the forecast path of heaviest seas and winds.
However, precautionary evacuations would cause production to diminish and cease in some cases.
Seas of 15-30 feet with locally larger waves are forecast near and just northeast of the storm track. Swells of 10-20 feet may extend outward over much of the Gulf.
Damaging hurricane-force winds, widespread power outages, flooding rainfall and storm surge flooding will occur near and east of the eye of the storm along part of the upper
As with any hurricane that makes landfall, there will be the risk of tornadoes being spawned.
The heaviest rain will fall from the Florida
Adverse travel conditions may extend as far west as
What will impacts from Michael be as the storm tracks inland?
After landfall, steering winds will guide Michael on a curved and accelerated northeastward path into
Increasing forward speed will tend to limit the duration and amount of rain.
Fast forward speed and the current strength of Michael now will mean substantial impact from wind well inland.
Even though Michael will weaken soon after making landfall in
People from parts of
"We expect less rain to fall with Michael, when compared to
Enough rain will still fall to cause urban, small stream and some river flooding in the region. A general 4-8 inches of rain is expected with local amounts to 12 inches.
Some areas that experienced flooding from
Another dose of heavy rain may once again saturate fields in the region, which may be another blow to agriculture.
After Michael spends several hours over land, the shield of heavy and steady rain may set up north of the center. This could put a secondary swath of flooding over part of the southern Appalachians and Piedmont areas.
An easterly wind will push some water toward the coasts of northeastern
As Michael accelerates, before heading out to sea, some tropical moisture will be drawn into a non-tropical storm and bring a period of heavy rain and localized flooding to the northeastern
"AccuWeather has provided forecasts and impactful warnings of severe weather with documented Superior Accuracy™ for 56 years. We have developed a unique expertise for damage and economic impact predictions by analyzing the total effects of the storm from before it hits to the immediate and post impact effects, including the six-month tail period afterward. That's why AccuWeather has been by far the most accurate source of damage and economic losses of any source, regularly beating out financial and insurance companies and other weather sources. AccuWeather accurately predicted damage in advance of storms during the 2017 hurricane season and ahead of
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