Tropical Storm Beta

Unbelieveable.

Tropical Storm Beta is bearing down on Nicaragua, with winds of about 62 mph. It is forecast to become a Cat1 Hurricane by tomorrow.

And we thought that last year's Hurricane Season was unreal. 23 named storms. 3 Cat5 Hurricanes. And a little more than one month to go in the 2005 Hurricane Season.

Waving Goodbye to Wilma

Wilma turned out to be a non-event for us, except for alot of rain--almost a foot. We slept through the worst, and are now enjoying sunshine and cooler weather. I'm so relieved, the memory of Jeanne's howling winds last year was something I did not want to relive.
Wilma is still a Cat2 hurricane with winds of 105 mph as it enters the Atlantic. It has all but absorbed TD Alpha. I guess Wilma was hungry.

This hurricane made landfall about 20 miles from Naples, FL as a Cat3 storm. Things look bad, lots of debris and flooding.

Wet, but not too Windy (yet)

Yes, I have more W words up my sleeve for future posts ;)

Hurricane Wilma is currently a Cat2 storm with winds of 110 mph--1 mph away from becoming a Cat3. We're getting one of the more substantial bands, lots of rain and tons of lightning from all directions. The wind will begin to pick up later this evening.

With tropical storm force winds expected, school has been cancelled--at least there is one silver lining to this storm, in my daughter's opinion.

Updates as our weather deteriorates.

In other news, Alpha has been downgraded to a tropical depression. You can see it in the lower right corner of the photo above.

Alpha on the horizon?

Hurricane Wilma has caused so much devastation as it continues to pass over the Yucatan Peninsula. It has weakend to 115 mph, and the pressure continues to rise, but it is expected to reorganize somewhat as the eye moves into the Gulf. How much she will restrengthen is debatable (anywhere from a Cat1 to a Cat3) but Wilma IS headed towards Florida's west coast.

The eye's landfall will happen sometime Monday morning, but we will be feeling the effects sooner than that. The wind field is quite large; NOAA has forecast lower-end tropical storm force winds for us (greater than 39 mph). However, the Spaghetti models are still in disagreement where Wilma will actually go. So it is important for anyone in Florida to pay attention to your local news, and finish hurricane preparations now.

Tropical Depression #25 has formed in the Atlantic and shows promise to become the historical Tropical Storm Alpha. Thankfully, it is projected to get swept up with the same steering currents as Wilma, and move out to sea and not affect the US.

Wilma, Friday update

We've been getting rain from Wilma today. Since it's just the outer bands, it's no different than any other rainshower. It's just a little more ominous.

Wilma is still a Cat4, with winds of 140 mph, and has slowed down enough that landfall will probably be sometime on Monday afternoon, in South Florida. We're expected to get some lower tropical storm force winds.

Drama Queen is waiting to hear if school will be cancelled for Monday.

Hurricane Wilma Strongest in Atlantic History

Hurricane Wilma is now a deadly Category 5 storm, with sustained winds of 175 mph. The pressure is 882 mb, which makes it the strongest hurricane in Atlantic basin history. Let's put it into perspective--Rita is #4 on that list, and Katrina is #6.

While the track yesterday took Wilma over Southwest Florida (and possibly even missing Florida altogether), it has begun to edge slightly to the northwest. The good news in this is that it's supposed to weaken to a Category 2-3 by landfall, which should be sometime on Saturday.

All the stats aside......I don't know what this is going to mean for us for sure. We're going to be affected, at the very least by tropical storm force winds and lots of rain. But it's still 3 days away, so the track isn't set in stone. All I know is my stomach is in knots.

Wary about Wilma

Tropical Storm Wilma gained strength this morning, becoming the 21st named storm of the season. We are tied with the record for 1933 (even though they didn't name storms at that point).

Even more ominous is the 5 pm forecast--it's taking a right hook and may be headed to Florida's west coast. This morning, the Spaghetti models were divided, as were the various storm sites I look to for my information. This afternoon, it's a different story.

More later this evening.

What's This? A Tropical Storm? (Tammy)

::::Saying that with tongue firmly in cheek:::::::

Tropical Storm Tammy organized quite suddenly this morning. Winds are at 40 mph with gusts over 50. It's expected to strengthen just a tiny bit before making landfall somewhere along the Northeast Florida coast.

Stan & A Possible Tammy?

Tropical Storm Stan is currently over the Bay of Campeche, and is expected to strengthen. It is not expected to hit the United States.

Meanwhile, a tropical wave has shown signs of organization near the Bahamas. The last I heard, they are sending out reconnaissance to check it out. If it develops further, it will be named Tammy.

The Hurricane Hunters
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I neglected to update that my sister in Houston was just fine during Rita. They got less than an inch of rain, and only lost a few tree branches.