[Tropical] Hurricane Local Statement

[EMWIN Server]

WTUS82 KMFL 241505
HLSMFL
AMZ610-630-650-651-670-671-FLZ063-066>075-GMZ656-657-676-241615-

HURRICANE LOCAL STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MIAMI FL
1105 AM EDT MON OCT 24 2005

...WILMA'S EYE MOVING OFFSHORE INTO THE ATLANTIC FROM METRO PALM BEACH COUNTY...

...AREAS AFFECTED...
THIS STATEMENT APPLIES TO THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES IN SOUTH FLORIDA
AND THE ADJACENT COASTAL WATERS INCLUDING LAKE OKEECHOBEE: COLLIER...GLADES...
HENDRY...PALM BEACH...BROWARD...MIAMI-DADE AND MAINLAND MONROE.

...NEW INFORMATION...
UPDATED WATCH WARNING INFORMATION
UPDATED STORM INFORMATION
UPDATED STORM SURGE IMPACTS
UPDATED WIND INFORMATION

...WATCHES/WARNINGS...

A HURRICANE WARNING/INLAND HURRICANE WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR ALL OF
MAINLAND SOUTH FLORIDA AND THE ADJACENT COASTAL WATERS AND LAKE OKEECHOBEE.

THE TORNADO WATCH EXPIRED AT 11 AM EDT AND WILL NOT BE REISSUED.

A FLOOD WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR ALL OF MAINLAND SOUTH FLORIDA.

...STORM INFORMATION...
THE WESTERN AND SOUTHERN EYE WALL IS NOW AFFECTING THE LAKE OKEECHOBEE REGION
AND METRO BROWARD AND WILL BE AFFECTING METRO PALM BEACH COUNTY WITH HURRICANE
FORCE WINDS.

AT 11 AM EDT...THE CENTER OF HURRICANE WILMA WAS AT LATITUDE 26.9 NORTH
LONGITUDE 80.0 WEST OR ABOUT 15 MILES NORTH-NORTHEAST OF WEST PALM BEACH.
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR AT MIAMI SHOWS THE EYE OF WILMA OFF THE
PALM BEACH COAST EAST OF JUPITER MOVING RAPIDLY OUT INTO THE ATLANTIC OCEAN.
WILMA IS MOVING NORTHEAST NEAR 25 MPH. THIS MOTION IS EXPECTED TO CONTINUE WITH
AN INCREASE IN FORWARD SPEED.

MAXIMUM SUSTAINED WINDS ARE NEAR 105 MPH WITH HIGHER GUSTS. WILMA IS NOW A
CATEGORY TWO HURRICANE ON THE SAFFIR-SIMPSON SCALE. SLOW WEAKENING IS FORECAST
AS WILMA MOVES OUT INTO THE ATLANTIC.

...PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
THE CENTER OF HURRICANE WILMA IS RAPIDLY MOVING INTO THE ATLANTIC. IT IS NOT
SAFE TO VENTURE OUTSIDE YET...HURRICANE FORCE WINDS WILL BE COMING AGAIN
WITH THE WESTERN AND SOUTHERN PARTS OF THE EYE WALL ACROSS THE LAKE
OKEECHOBEE AREA AND METRO BROWARD AND IN AN HOUR OR TWO ACROSS METRO
PALM BEACH COUNTY. TROPICAL STORM FORCE WINDS WITH GUSTS TO HURRICANE FORCE WILL
BE OCCURRING ACROSS MAINLAND SOUTH FLORIDA FOR ANOTHER FEW HOURS ACROSS THE
REST OF MAINLAND SOUTH FLORIDA.

THE RAIN WILL BE ENDING BY NOON ACROSS METRO COLLIER COUNTY AND WILL BE ENDING
ACROSS THE REST OF SOUTH FLORIDA THIS AFTERNOON. TROPICAL STORM FORCE WINDS
WILL BE DECREASING SLOWLY ACROSS MAINLAND SOUTH FLORIDA BUT OCCASIONAL GUSTS TO
HURRICANE FORCE CAN BE EXPECTED WITH ANY SQUALLS IN THE SPIRAL BANDS.

POWER LINES ARE DOWN ACROSS MANY PARTS OF MAINLAND SOUTH FLORIDA. STAY AWAY FROM
DOWNED POWER LINES...ESPECIALLY ONES THAT MAY BE DOWN IN STANDING WATER. REPORT
ANY DOWNED POWER LINES TO FLORIDA POWER AND LIGHT AT 1-800-4 OUTAGE.

...STORM SURGE FLOOD AND STORM TIDE IMPACTS...
STORM SURGE ALONG THE SOUTHWEST GULF COAST AND THE NORTH COAST OF FLORIDA BAY
SHOULD BE DIMINISHING NOW THAT THE WINDS ARE BLOWING PARALLEL TO THE COAST OR
OFFSHORE. STORM SURGE ALONG THE ATLANTIC COAST...PARTICULARLY BISCAYNE BAY...
SHOULD BEGIN TO RECEDE NOW THAT WINDS WILL BE BLOWING OFFSHORE.

FOR LAKE OKEECHOBEE...A STORM SURGE OF 5 TO 8 FEET ABOVE CURRENT LAKE LEVELS IS
NOW OCCURRING ALONG THE SOUTHWEST SHORE FROM LAKEPORT TO SOUTH BAY. THIS
SURGE WILL BE MOVING TOWARD BELLE GLADE...PAHOKEE...AND CANAL POINT AS
THE WIND DIRECTION BECOMES MORE NORTHWEST. THIS WILL CAUSE SOME FLOODING
OF LOW AREAS OUTSIDE HOOVER DIKE PROTECTION INCLUDING TORRY...KREAMER AND RITTA
ISLANDS AND SOME ACCESS ROADS. THE LAKE LEVEL ON SUNDAY WAS 15.6 FEET ABOVE MEAN
SEA LEVEL. THE SURGE WILL BEGIN TO RECEDE LATER THIS AFTERNOON AS THE WINDS
SLOWLY DIMINISH.

...WIND IMPACTS...
HURRICANE FORCE WINDS ARE STILL BEING REPORTED IN THE WEST AND SOUTHWEST EYE
WALL WHICH WILL BE MOVING THROUGH THE LAKE OKEECHOBEE REGION AS WELL AS METRO
BROWARD AND PALM BEACH COUNTIES THROUGH NOON. AT 1050 AM A WIND GUST TO 95 MPH
WAS REPORTED AT FORT LAUDERDALE INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT. AT 930 AM EDT A GUST TO
102 MPH WAS REPORTED AT THE SOUTH FLORIDA WATER MANAGEMENT DISTRICT DATA SITE IN
THE MIDDLE OF LAKE OKEECHOBEE. TROPICAL STORM FORCE WINDS ARE STILL BEING
OBSERVED ACROSS THE REST OF MAINLAND SOUTH FLORIDA AND OCCASIONAL GUSTS TO
HURRICANE FORCE CAN BE EXPECTED. PERSONS MUST NOT DRIVE OR WALK AROUND IN
TROPICAL STORM OR HURRICANE FORCE WINDS. SEVERAL SOUTH FLORIDA DEATHS OCCURRED
IN KATRINA WHEN PEOPLE DECIDED TO WALK AROUND TO WATCH TREES FALL IN STRONG
WINDS.

EXTENSIVE POWER OUTAGES HAVE OCCURRED. FLORIDA POWER AND LIGHT ESTIMATED 1.6
MILLION CUSTOMERS WITHOUT POWER ACROSS SOUTH FLORIDA AT 8 AM EDT. WHEN USING
GENERATORS...REMEMBER TO ALLOW FOR ADEQUATE VENTILATION. DO NOT RUN GENERATORS
IN ENCLOSED AREAS BECAUSE CARBON MONOXIDE POISONING CAN EASILY KILL PEOPLE WITH
NO WARNING. EVERY HURRICANE SITUATION IN THE LAST FEW YEARS HAS RESULTED IN
CARBON MONOXIDE POISONING DEATHS.

SOUTH FLORIDIANS WILL NOTICE A DISTINCTLY COOLER AND DRIER AIR MASS MOVING INTO
THE REGION IN THE WAKE OF HURRICANE WILMA.

...LOCAL MARINE IMPACTS...
TROPICAL STORM CONDITIONS ARE STILL OCCURRING OVER THE GULF COASTAL WATERS OF
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA. SLOWLY IMPROVING CONDITIONS WILL OCCUR BY MID AFTERNOON
AND CONDITIONS WILL CONTINUE TO IMPROVE THROUGH TONIGHT.

ACROSS LAKE OKEECHOBEE...HURRICANE CONDITIONS ARE NOW OCCURRING. THE
WINDS SHOULD START DIMINISHING BY MID AFTERNOON WITH TROPICAL STORM
CONDITIONS SUBSIDING THIS EVENING.

ALONG THE ATLANTIC COASTAL WATERS OF SOUTHEAST FLORIDA...HURRICANE
CONDITIONS ARE NOW OCCURRING. WINDS SHOULD START DIMINISHING ACROSS THE ATLANTIC
COASTAL WATERS LATE THIS AFTERNOON WITH TROPICAL STORM CONDITIONS SUBSIDING THIS
EVENING.

...LOCAL FLOOD IMPACTS...
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR FROM MIAMI ESTIMATES AS MUCH AS 6 TO 8
INCHES OF RAINFALL ACROSS METRO COLLIER COUNTY NORTHEAST TO IMMOKALEE INTO
HENDRY AND GLADES COUNTIES. RAINFALL RATES OF 1 TO 2 INCHES PER HOUR ARE
OCCURRING WITH THE STRONGEST SPIRAL BANDS. A FLOOD WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR
ALL OF MAINLAND SOUTH FLORIDA BUT WILL LIKELY BE CANCELLED THIS AFTERNOON.

...LOCAL TORNADO IMPACTS...
THE TORNADO WATCH FOR SOUTH FLORIDA EXPIRED AT 11 AM EDT. AS WILMA MOVES
OUT INTO THE ATLANTIC AND AWAY FROM SOUTH FLORIDA...THE TORNADO THREAT WILL
SIGNIFICANTLY DIMINISH.

...NEXT UPDATE...
THE NEXT UPDATE WILL BE ISSUED AROUND NOON EDT.

$$

PFOST

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