Bahamas News
ALERT #21 ON HURRICANE DORIAN ISSUED BY THE BAHAMAS DEPARTMENT OF METEOROLOGY SATURDAY 31ST AUGUST, 2019.
#Nassau, August 31, 2019 – Bahamas – ….DORIAN IS STRONGER AND MOVING WESTWARD….
A HURRICANE WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR PORTIONS OF THE NORTHWEST BAHAMAS WHICH INCLUDES: NORTH ELEUTHERA, ABACO, GRAND BAHAMA, BIMINI, THE BERRY ISLANDS AND NEW PROVIDENCE.
A HURRICANE WARNING MEANS THAT HURRICANE CONDITIONS COULD AFFECT THE MENTIONED ISLANDS WITHIN 36 HOURS.
A HURRICANE WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR NORTH ANDROS.
A HURRICANE WATCH MEANS THAT HURRICANE CONDITIONS COULD AFFECT THE MENTIONED ISLAND WITHIN 48 HOURS
AT 8AM EDT, THE CENTER OF HURRICANE DORIAN WAS LOCATED NEAR LATITUDE 25.8 DEGREES NORTH AND LONGITUDE 73.0 DEGREES WEST OR ABOUT 225 MILES EAST-NORTHEAST OF GOVERNOR’S HARBOUR ELEUTHERA, 257 MILES EAST-SOUTHEAST OF MARSH HARBOUR ABACO, 275 MILES EAST-NORTHEAST OF NEW PROVIDENCE AND 305 MILES EAST-SOUTHEAST OF EAST END GRAND BAHAMA.
HURRICANE DORIAN IS MOVING TOWARD THE WEST AT ABOUT 12 MPH. A SLOWER WESTWARD MOTION SHOULD CONTINUE INTO EARLY NEXT WEEK. ON THIS TRACK, THE CORE OF DORIAN SHOULD MOVE OVER THE ATLANTIC WELL NORTH OF THE SOUTHEASTERN AND CENTRAL BAHAMAS TODAY, BE NEAR OR OVER THE NORTHWESTERN BAHAMAS ON SUNDAY, AND BE NEAR THE FLORIDA EAST COAST LATE MONDAY.
MAXIMUM SUSTAINED WINDS ARE NEAR 145 MILES PER HOUR WITH HIGHER GUSTS. DORIAN IS NOW A CATEGORY 4 HURRICANE ON THE SAFFIR-SIMPSON HURRICANE WIND SCALE. SOME STRENGTHENING IS POSSIBLE TODAY. ALTHOUGH FLUCTUATIONS IN INTENSITY ARE POSSIBLE EARLY NEXT WEEK, DORIAN IS EXPECTED TO REMAIN AN EXTREMELY DANGEROUS HURRICANE DURING THE NEXT FEW DAYS WHILE IT MOVES NEAR THE NORTHWEST BAHAMAS.
HURRICANE FORCE WINDS EXTEND OUTWARD UP TO 30 MILES FROM THE CENTER AND TROPICAL STORM FORCE WINDS EXTEND OUTWARD UP TO 105 MILES FROM THE CENTER.
RESIDENTS IN NORTH ELEUTHERA, ABACO, GRAND BAHAMA, BIMINI AND THE BERRY ISLANDS AND NEW PROVIDENCE SHOULD RUSH TO COMPLETE ALL HURRICANE PREPAREDNESS AS THERE IS A STRONG POSSIBILITY THAT THE CENTER OF DORIAN WILL MOVE OVER THE NORTHWEST BAHAMAS ON SUNDAY. RESIDENTS IN ABACO COULD BEGIN TO EXPERIENCE TROPICAL STORM FORCE WINDS SOON AFTER MIDNIGHT TONIGHT AND HURRICANE FORCE WINDS AT ABOUT SUNRISE ON SUNDAY. RESIDENTS IN EAST END GRAND BAHAMA COULD BEGIN TO EXPERIENCE TROPICAL STORM FORCE WINDS EARLY SUNDAY MORNING.
AS DORIAN IS EXPECTED TO SLOW DOWN AS IT NEARS THE NORTHWEST BAHAMAS, A PROLONGED PERIOD OF LIFE-THREATENING STORM SURGE ACCOMPANIED BY LARGE AND DESTRUCTIVE WAVES UP TO 15 FEET ABOVE NORMAL TIDE CAN BE EXPECTED ALONG THE EASTERN AND NORTHERN SHORES OF ELEUTHERA AND ABACO ON SUNDAY AND THE NORTHERN AND SOUTHERN SHORES OF GRAND BAHAMA ON SUNDAY NIGHT THROUGH TO MONDAY MORNING.
DORIAN IS EXPECTED TO PRODUCE RAINFALL AMOUNTS OF 10 TO 15 INCHES OVER PORTIONS OF THE NORTHWEST BAHAMAS AND 2 TO 4 INCHES OVER PORTIONS OF THE CENTRAL BAHAMAS.
MARINERS ARE TO REMAIN IN PORT AS MODERATE TO LARGE SWELLS ARE LIKELY TO AFFECT THE EASTERN SHORES OF THE NORTHWEST AND CENTRAL BAHAMAS TODAY.
THE NEXT ALERT ON HURRICANE DORIAN WILL BE ISSUED AT 12PM EDT ON SATURDAY 31ST AUGUST, 2019.
PREPARED BY: GREGORY D. THOMPSON (SMO)