29th August 2010 – At 11pm, the center of Hurricane Earl was located near Latitude 17.9 North/Longitude 61.1 West or approximately 216 miles east of the Virgin Islands. It is moving west-northwest near 15 mph, with maximum sustained winds near 100 mph with higher gusts. Hurricane force winds extend outward up to 45 miles from the center and tropical storm force winds extend outward up to 175 miles. The latest minimum central pressure is 971 MB. Earl is now a Category 2 Hurricane Saffir-Simpson Wind Scale.
A Hurricane Warning remains in effect for the British Virgin Islands.
A hurricane warning means that hurricane conditions are expected within the warning area in 36 hour. Preparations to protect life and property should be rushed to completion.
Squalls from Earl will continue to affect the northern Lesser Antilles tonight. Conditions will rapidly deteriorate across the region. Beginning late tonight and into Monday, tropical storm force winds will begin to spread across the British Virgin Islands followed by rapidly deteriorating conditions, exposing the Territory to hurricane force winds. On the forecast track, the center of Earl will pass near or over the northern most Leeward Islands late tonight, passing about 30 miles north of Anegada late Monday.
Storm surge is expected to be much as 2-4 feet above coast line ground level. 3-5 inches of rain is expected over the northern Leeward Islands, potentially bringing flash flood and landslides.
By Tuesday, Earl is expected to gradually turn to the northwest and accelerate between the United States and Bermuda and could become a Category 4 Hurricane. By then, conditions should be improving in our area.
All residents should have completed their preparations by now.
The National Emergency Operations Center was formally activated by His Excellency the Governor at 5pm today. Weather releases and advisories will continue to be available throughout the passage of Earl at the Department of Disaster Management’s website at www.bviddm.com. DDM officers may be contacted via 468-4200, 468-9121, 468-9416, 468-9854 and 468-9665.
Disclaimer: The Department of Disaster Management (DDM) is not an official Meteorological Office. The Information disseminated by the Department is gathered from a number of professional sources used or contracted by the DDM to provide such information. This information is to be used as a guide by anyone who has interest in local weather conditions. By no means can the DDM or the BVI Government be held accountable by anyone who uses this information appropriately for legal evidence or in justification of any decision which may result in the loss of finances, property or life.
