CAT. 4: Michael Prepares For Landfall On Florida’s Panhandle As Category 4 Hurricane
By Space Coast Daily // October 10, 2018
max sustained winds at 130 mph
ABOVE VIDEO: The “monstrous” Category 3 hurricane is closing in on the Florida Panhandle with storm surges forecast at up to 12 feet.
FLORIDA – National Hurricane Center’s latest report shows Hurricane Michael has strengthened to a category 4 before it makes landfall on Florida’s Panhandle.
If Hurricane Michael becomes a Category 4 and makes landfall as forecast by the National Hurricane Center, it would be the strongest hurricane to ever come ashore along the Florida Panhandle in records dating to 1851, according to Dr. Phil Klotzbach, tropical scientist at Colorado State University.
Hurricane Michael’s max sustained winds have been recorded at 130 mph and is moving to the north at 12 mph.
“On the forecast track, the center of Michael will move across the eastern Gulf of Mexico through tonight,” said National Hurricane Center in a statement.
“The center of Michael’s eye is then expected to move inland over the Florida Panhandle or Florida Big Bend area on Wednesday, and then move northeastward across the southeastern United States Wednesday night and Thursday, and move off the Mid-Atlantic coast away from the United States on Friday.”
Life threatening storm surge is threatening areas along the coast of Florida’s Panhandle that could Mexico Beach to Keaton Beach reach 9-13 feet, according to the National Hurricane Center.
Florida has been declared in a state of emergency and evacuation orders have been issued for some areas along the coast of Florida’s Panhandle.
President Donald Trump declared that an emergency exists in the State of Florida and ordered Federal assistance to supplement State and local response efforts due to the emergency conditions resulting from Hurricane Michael beginning on October 7, 2018, and continuing.
The President’s action authorizes the Department of Homeland Security, Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), to coordinate all disaster relief efforts which have the purpose of alleviating the hardship and suffering caused by the emergency on the local population, and to provide appropriate assistance for required emergency measures, authorized under Title V of the Stafford Act, to save lives and to protect property and public health and safety, and to lessen or avert the threat of a catastrophe.
Specifically, FEMA is authorized to identify, mobilize, and provide at its discretion, equipment and resources necessary to alleviate the impacts of the emergency.
Debris removal and emergency protective measures, including direct federal assistance, will be provided at 75 percent Federal funding in the counties of Bay, Calhoun, Franklin, Gadsden, Gulf, Hamilton, Jackson, Jefferson, Leon, Liberty, Madison, Suwannee, Taylor, and Wakulla. Emergency protective measures, limited to direct federal assistance will be provided at 75 percent funding in the counties of Alachua, Baker, Bradford, Citrus, Columbia, Dixie, Escambia, Gilchrist, Hernando, Hillsborough, Holmes, Lafayette, Levy, Manatee, Okaloosa, Pasco, Pinellas, Santa Rosa, Union, Walton, and Washington.
Brock Long, Administrator, Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), Department of Homeland Security, named Thomas J. McCool as the Federal Coordinating Officer for Federal recovery operations in the affected areas.
CLICK HERE FOR BREVARD COUNTY NEWS
