Hurricane Irene Alert
All Warnings For The Turks And Caicos Islands Have Been Discontinued And The All Clear Giveen. At 8:00 Pm Edt, The Center Of Hurricane Irene Was Located Near Latitude 23.5 Degrees North And Longitude 75.0 Degrees West Or 24 Miles East-Southeast Of Stella Maris, Long Island, 109 Miles South-East Of Bannerman Town, Eleuthera And About 183 Miles Southeast Of Nassau.
Irene Is moving Toward The Northwest Near 12 Miles Per Hour And This General Motion Is Expected To Continue Through Tonight.A Turn Toward The North-Northwest And Then North Is Expected Thursday And Thursday Night. On The Forecast Track The Core Of Irene Is Moving Parallel To The East Coast Of Long Island, Placing Rum Cay, Cat Island And Eleuthera In The Extremely Dangerous Quadrant Of The Hurricane.
Maximum Sustained Winds Have Increased To Near 120 Miles Per Hour With Higher Gusts. Irene Is A Category Three Hurricane On The Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale. Additional Strengthening Is Forecast During The Next Day Or So And Irene Could Become A Categorey Four Hurricane By Thursday.
Hurricane Force Winds Extend Outward Up To 60 Miles From The Centre And Tropical Storm Force Winds Extend Outward Up To 230 Miles From The Centre.
Storm Surge And Battering Waves Are Now Impacting Long Island, Rum Cay And San Salvador And Will Spread To Cat Island And Exuma Later Tonight And Eleuthera Eary Thursday Morning. Heavy Downpours Will Result In Widespread Flooding In Many Of The Low Lying Islands. Extreme Caution Should Be Exercised In Flooded Areas Near Downed Powerlines. Storm Surge Will Impact Some Islands In The Northwest Bahamas By Early Thursday Morning.
Residents In Long Island, Exuma, Rum Cay, San Salvador And Cat Island, Acklins, Crooked Islands, Mayaguana And Inagua Should Remain Indoors. Residents In Eleuthera, New Providence And Abaco Should Brace Themselves For Tropical Storm And Hurricaneconditions Which Could Begin By 9 Pm Tonight.
Residents Are Advised To Use The Streets In New Providence For Emergency Purposes Only As Most Will Become Impassable Shortly Due To Strong Winds And Localized Flooding
Small Craft Operators In The Northwest, Central And Southeast Bahamas And Also The Turks And Caicos Islands Should Remain In Port.
The Next Alert Will Be Issued At Midnight Edt. (Prepared By Arthur.W.Rolle)
