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EYE
OF ISIDORE ENTERING THE SOUTHEASTERN GULF OF MEXICO;
WINDS AND RAINS WILL CONTINUE OVER WESTERN CUBA
September
20, 2002 — NOAA satellite images and radar data indicate that the
center of Hurricane Isidore is emerging off the north coast of Cuba and
entering the southeast Gulf of Mexico. At 11 p.m. EDT, the center of Hurricane
Isidore was located near latitude 22.4 north, longitude 84.6 west or about
40 miles north-northeast of Cabo San Antonio on the western tip of Cuba.
Isidore has been drifting toward the northwest during the past few hours,
but it should resume a track between the northwest and west-northwest
near 7 mph during the next 12 to 24 hours, according to the NOAA
National Hurricane Center in Miami, Fla. (Click NOAA satellite
image for larger view of Hurricane Isidore taken at 11:15 p.m. EDT on
Sept. 20, 2002. Click here
to see latest view. Please credit “NOAA.”)
Maximum
sustained winds remain near 100 mph with higher gusts. Strengthening is
forecast during the next 24 hours, and Isidore could become a major hurricane
in the Gulf of Mexico. Hurricane force winds extend outward up to 35 miles
from the center, and tropical storm force winds extend outward up to 145
miles. Estimated minimum central pressure is 964 mb, 28.47 inches. (NOAA
aerial photo of Hurricane Isidore taken Thursday, Sept. 19, 2002 at 7:36
p.m. EDT from a NOAA
P-3 Orion "hurricane hunter" aircraft at an altitude of
7,000 feet. Click here
for high resolution version. Please note that this is a large file. Please
credit "NOAA.")
Although the center of Isidore is beginning to move away from Cuba, extremely
heavy rainfall amounts—up to 20 to 30 inches—are still possible
over portions of western Cuba. Coastal storm surge flooding of 8 to 12
feet above normal tide levels, along with large and dangerous battering
waves, are occurring along the south coast of western Cuba but should
gradually diminish.
A hurricane warning remains in effect for the western Cuban provinces of Matanzas, Ciudad de La Habana, La Habana and Pinar del Rio, including the Isle of Youth. A tropical storm warning and a hurricane watch remain in effect from Progresso to Tulum on the Yucatan peninsula, including the island of Cozumel.
For storm information specific to your area, please monitor products issued by NOAA National Weather Service local forecast offices.
Click
NOAA tracking map for larger view.
Relevant
Web Sites
NOAA's
National Hurricane Center —
Get the latest advisories here
NOAA's Atlantic Hurricanes
Database — 150 Years of Atlantic Hurricanes
El
Niño Expected to Impact Atlantic Hurricane Season, NOAA Reports
Saffir-Simpson Hurricane
Scale
NOAA's River Forecast Centers
NOAA's Flood Products
NOAA Rainfall Graphics
24-hour
Observed Precipitation as of 8 a.m. today
Latest
rainfall data as of 8 a.m. EDT today
NOAA Buoys
NOAA Satellite Images — The
latest satellite views
Colorized Satellite Images
NOAA 3-D Satellite Images
NOAA's Hurricanes Page
NOAA's Storm Watch —
Get the latest severe weather information across the USA
Media
Contact:
Frank
Lepore, NOAA's National Hurricane
Center, (305) 229-4404
(Photo courtesy
of Sean McMillan, systems crew chief aboard NOAA-42 P-3 "hurricane
hunter" aircraft.)
 Click NOAA photo for larger view of Sean McMillan, NOAA systems crew chief of NOAA-42 P-3 aircraft, at work last May. Click here for high resolution version. Please note that this is a large file. |
Sean
McMillan NOAA Systems Crew Chief NOAA42 P-3 Orion “Hurricane Hunter” NOAA Aircraft Operations Center, Tampa, Fla. Science and Engineering Division The
responsibilities of Systems Crew Chief are to plan, coordinate,
document, install and upgrade the aircraft scientific systems, as
well as to network the onboard computers systems with those of other
scientific organizations. |
