The U.S. National Hurricane Center said late Friday that “some additional strengthening is possible tonight and Saturday” for Hurricane Dorian, already a Category 4 storm, VOA news reports.
“Dorian is expected to remain a powerful hurricane during the next few days,” the center said.
The storm is moving toward the Bahamas and the U.S. state of Florida.
“The core of Dorian should move over the Atlantic well north of the southeastern and central Bahamas tonight and tomorrow, be near or over the northwestern Bahamas on Sunday, and be near the Florida east coast late Monday,” the center said Friday.
Tourist Loren Fantasia from Baltimore swings on the beach before the arrival of Hurricane Dorian, in Freeport, Bahamas, Aug. 30, 2019. The hurricane has strengthened to a Category 4 storm.
The Bahamian government has issued a hurricane warning for the northwestern Bahamas, while U.S. President Donald Trump has declared a state of emergency for the state of Florida.
The National Hurricane Center said because Dorian is moving slowly, at 17 kilometers per hour (10.5 mph), it could produce prolonged rains, winds and storm surges, leading to life-threatening flash floods.
Dorian has maximum sustained winds of 220 kilometers per hour.
Forecasters predict that Dorian could slam into southeastern Florida on Monday, however the latest models also predict a chance that the storm could turn northward and hug the eastern coast of the United States. They say Dorian’s track is still highly uncertain.
Category 4 storms are capable of what experts describe as catastrophic damage, destroying homes and buildings, ripping up roads, and knocking down trees and power lines.
Florida National Guard Major General James Eifert said 2,000 troops mobilized in the state Friday, with another 2,000 joining them Saturday.
U.S. President Donald Trump canceled a planned trip to Poland to “ensure that all resources of the federal government are focused on the arriving storm … it’s something very important for me to be here,” he said Thursday. The president owns several properties in Florida, including the Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach and the Trump National Doral in Miami, which Trump has suggested as a possible venue for next year’s Group of Seven summit.
No evacuation orders yet
Officials in Florida have not yet ordered any mass evacuations because the track of the storm is still unclear. Residents in Florida have been filling their gas tanks in case they need to leave their homes.
The auto and travel group AAA said Friday that there is plenty of gas for Floridians, but said the difficulty is in getting it to retailers quickly enough to keep up with the demand from drivers. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has ordered state troopers to escort tanker trucks carrying fuel to gas stations to help ensure it reaches retailers quickly and safely.
DeSantis has urged residents to stock up on at least a week’s worth of food, water and medicine and be prepared to lose power for days after Hurricane Dorian makes landfall.
“I think there’s a pretty high degree of certainty that this is going to be a major hurricane,” DeSantis said.
Orlando International Airport said it plans to shutdown Monday because of the storm.
At NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, NASA began moving its launch platform for rockets to a giant hangar built to withstand strong winds.
Bahamas urges evacuations
The Bahamas Ministry of Tourism and Aviation said the Grand Bahamas International Airport in Freeport will not open again until Tuesday.
Officials in the Bahamas urged people to evacuate and seek shelter.
“Do not be foolish and try to brave out this hurricane,” Prime Minister Hubert Minnis said at a news conference.
Dorian largely spared Puerto Rico and the U.S. and British Virgin Islands, causing some floods and power outages but no major damage.