Hurricane Earl threatens eastern US
Thursday, September 2, 2010
Image: NASA.
Hurricane Earl, a large tropical cyclone in the Atlantic ocean, is currently on course to strike parts of the eastern United States, including the Outer Banks of North Carolina and Cape Cod, Massachusetts. The storm began near the Cape Verde islands off the coast of Africa, and moved steadily to the west. It then neared the Caribbean, and caused damage in Puerto Rico and the Anguilla before taking a more northwards track. As of now, Earl continues on a northward track, but is expected to turn to the east.
As hurricanes generally are difficult to predict and have vastly changing forecasts sometimes, Wikinews will be providing with readers with live updates on Hurricane Earl. If you are in the path of this storm, remember to follow all updates and evacuation orders by local and federal governments.
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Location: 115 mi south of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina Source: National Hurricane Center |
Live updates
September 3
Update: 4:30 P.M. EST)
Rain associated with the storm has started to fall in Massachusetts. (OR)
Update: 1:24 P.M. (EST)
The Boston Globe is reporting that the storm may be downgraded to a tropical storm by the time it approaches Cape Cod and its surrounding areas. (link)
Update: 1:21 P.M. (EST)
Earl has been downgraded to a category 1 storm. Its winds are at 85 mph. (link)
September 2
Update: 11:40 P.M. (EST)
That is all for Wikinews' coverage for tonight. Please check back tomorrow morning for more updates.
Update: 11:37 P.M. (EST)
Earl's winds have weakened to 105 mph. The National Hurricane Center's advisory shows that Earl is 115 miles away from land. The storm will likely strike early tomorrow morning. (link)
Update: 9:31 P.M. (EST)
The Weather Channel has posted a useful list of all current evacuation orders, road conditions, and power outage reports.
Update: 9:08 P.M. (EST)
US president Barack Obama has just signed a statewide disaster declaration for North Carolina. Obama says that he is "closely monitoring" the storm and will "aggressively prepare" for any damage or impact caused by Earl. (link)
Update: 8:12 P.M. (EST)
The Weather Channel has updated its computer forecast models for the storm. (link)
Update: 8:07 P.M. (EST)
The storm has been downgraded to a category 2 as it nears land. Maximum winds have lowered to approximately 110 mph (165 km/h). Earl is currently located 160 miles south of the Outer Banks. (link)
Update: 7:26 P.M. (EST)
Emergency management officials in Novia Scotia are advising residents to watch the storm closely, as a landfall may be in the future. (link)
Update: 7:11 P.M. (EST)
Massachusetts governor Deval Patrick has declared a state of emergency in Massachusetts in preparation for a possible landfall on Cape Cod. He also deployed the National Guard across possible affected areas. (link)
Update: 6:59 P.M. (EST)
Hurricane Earl has been downgraded to a Category 3 hurricane on the SSHS. Its current maximum sustained winds are 115 mph (185 kp/h). (link)
Update: 6:38 P.M. (EST)
The National Weather Service has issued a tropical storm watch for the coast of New Jersey. A tropical storm watch (TRA) is issued when tropical storm force winds from 39 to 73 mph (63 to 117 km/h) pose a possible threat to a specified coastal area within 48 hours. (link)
Sources
- Vivian Tyson. "Earl to brush Turks and Caicos on path toward US" — Associated Press, August 30, 2010
