Hurricane Isaias Hits Northwest Florida

Hurricane Isaias hit Northwest Florida on Friday evening.  At 11:00 p.m. EDT on Friday the center of Hurricane Isaias was located at latitude 30.8°N and longitude 86.5°W which put the center about 45 miles (75 km) east-northeast of Pensacola, Florida.  Isaias was moving toward the north at 20 m.p.h. (32 km/h).  The maximum sustained wind speed was 90 m.p.h. (145 km/h) and there were wind gusts to 105 m.p.h. (165 km/h).  The minimum surface pressure was 982 mb.

A Hurricane Warning is in effect for the portion of the coast from the Mississippi/Alabama border to the Bay County/Gulf County line in Florida.

A Tropical Storm Warning is in effect for the portion of the coast from the Bay County/Gulf County line to the Aucilla River in Florida.

The center of Hurricane Isaias made landfall near Destin, Florida on Friday evening.

Hurricane Isaias was a Category 2 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Scale at the time of landfall.  The maximum sustained wind speed was 105 m.p.h. (165 km/h) when the center of Isaias made landfall.  The Hurricane Intensity Index (HII) was 17.8.  The Hurricane Size Index (HSI) was 14.6 and the Hurricane Wind Intensity Size Index (HWISI) was 32.4.

An upper level low that is over Mississippi will steer Hurricane Isaias toward the north during the next 24 hours.  On its anticipated track, Hurricane Isaias will move inland over Alabama on Saturday.

Hurricane Isaias will continue to bring strong winds to northwest Florida during the next few hours.  Even though Hurricane Isaias will weaken to a tropical storm by Saturday morning, Isaias will bring strong winds and heavy rain to Alabama on Saturday.

Flood Watches are in effect for parts of Alabama.

There are reports of over 400,000 customers without electricity in Florida.  There are also reports of over 200,000 customers without electricity in Alabama.

There are also reports of flooding due to a storm surge along parts of the coast of Northwest Florida.

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