Hurricane Isabel Predicted to Hit U.S.
Storm has top winds of 155 mph
Sunday, September 14, 2003
(6:37 PM ET) (22:37 GMT)
The Cable News Network
Forecasters warned that large ocean swells and dangerous surf conditions were likely over parts of the Leeward Islands, Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic over the next several days. Those surf conditions were also predicted to affect the southeastern U.S. coast over the next several days.
Animated map shows Isabel's movement Sunday from 4:15 a.m. to 7:45 AM ET.
Image Credit: Accuweather
CNN
Hurricane Isabel dipped just below Category 5 status late Sunday morning, but the still powerful hurricane with top winds of 155 mph was forecast to hit the U.S. East Coast by the end of the week.
"We feel pretty confident that someone will [get hit]," said Eric Blake, a specialist at the National Hurricane Center told Reuters. "We're forecasting a major hurricane for the United States East Coast."
Hurricane center forecasters said they expected the storm to hit the U.S. East Coast by the end of the week, but added that air currents and condition could push it further north before landfall.
"Landfall along the U.S. Mid-Atlantic coast somewhere between North Carolina and New Jersey between four or five days is appearing more and more likely," the hurricane center said.
Isabel remained far from land at 5 p.m. EDT Sunday, 320 miles (515 km) east-northeast of the Turks and Caicos Islands, moving west-northwest at about 13 mph (20 km/h).
Before its dip Sunday, Isabel had twice reached the Category 5 threshold of 156 mph. Forecasters said the storm would likely experience a gradual weakening.
Category 5 is the highest rating for a hurricane.
(More: CNN.com)
2003 © Cable News Network LP, LLLP.
Dan
Hurricane Isabel Predicted to Hit U.S. . . .