Delta maintaining Category 4 strength as Cozumel awaits its impact - WJXT News4JAX

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Delta has weakened a tad after peaking with wind gusts of up to 175 mph. The hurricane is moving extremely fast for a storm of this strength, screaming to the west-northwest at 17 mph. Delta will likely weaken after making landfall later this morning in the Northeastern corner of the Yucatan peninsula.

Once back over the Western Gulf of Mexico, Delta is expected to re-intensify back into a Category 4 hurricane. It is expected to make landfall as a Category 3 storm along the Louisiana coastline late Friday night or early Saturday.

Delta’s rapid intensification has been one for the record books, you can read about how no other Atlantic hurricane has ever strengthened this much this fast after forming.

Within minutes of the National Hurricane Center upgrading Delta to a Category 3 hurricane Tuesday morning, data from a NOAA Hurricane Hunter aircraft indicated that sustained winds had increased to 130 mph. That bumped it to a Category 4 storm.

By the 5 p.m. update, winds had increased to near 145 mph and additional strengthening is expected during the next day or so. Delta will be a dangerous hurricane when it reaches the Yucatan Peninsula early Wednesday. It will then move into the Gulf of Mexico as a Category 3 hurricane.

As of 8 p.m., Delta was 180 miles east-southeast of Cozumel, Mexico.

A hurricane warning was in effect for Tulum and Cozumel, resorts still being soaked by the remnants of Tropical Storm Gamma.

TRACK THE TOPICS: Interactive map and storm-by-storm coverage

A west-northwestward to northwestward motion is expected over the next couple of days. A slower northwestward to north-northwestward motion is forecast to begin on Thursday, and a northward motion is expected Thursday night and Friday. On the forecast track, the center of Delta will move over the northeastern portion of the Yucatan peninsula late Tuesday night or early Wednesday. Delta is forecast to move over the southern Gulf of Mexico Wednesday afternoon, be over the southern or central Gulf of Mexico through Thursday, and approach the northern Gulf coast on Friday.

Some strengthening is possible before the center reaches the coast of the Yucatan peninsula early Wednesday. Although some weakening is likely when Delta moves over the Yucatan peninsula, re-strengthening is forecast when the hurricane moves over the southern Gulf of Mexico Wednesday night and Thursday.

“While there is large uncertainty in the track and intensity forecasts, there is a significant risk of dangerous storm surge, wind, and rainfall hazards along the coast from Louisiana to the western Florida Panhandle beginning Thursday night or Friday. Residents in these areas should ensure they have their hurricane plan in place and monitor updates to the forecast of Delta,” the Hurricane Center said.

Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey and Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards on Tuesday signed a state of emergency for their states that would let officials seek federal aid more quickly if needed later.

Beach communities on the Alabama and Florida’s Panhandle are still clearing away the damage from Hurricane Sally, which made landfall at Gulf Shores on Sept. 16, as they warn people to be ready for Hurricane Delta.

Gov. Ron DeSantis advised residents to keep an eye on the system while expressing hope the system’s track remains west of the state.

“It’s been moving further west. And so, if that track holds, then you’d probably see modest impacts in places like Pensacola. But, as we saw just a few weeks ago with (Hurricane) Sally, there was wobbles to the east,” DeSantis said while in The Villages for a midday Tuesday news conference on coronavirus testing. “And so, just keep an eye on it. Listen to your folks on the local level and heed instructions. We think it’s going to be a really significant hurricane."

Delta is the earliest 25th named storm to form in the Atlantic, beating the old record of Nov. 15, 2005, according to Colorado State University hurricane researcher Phil Klotzbach.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

October 07, 2020 at 05:54AM
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Delta maintaining Category 4 strength as Cozumel awaits its impact - WJXT News4JAX

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