Florida now in the projected path of Tropical Storm Dorian

Florida is now within a 5-day forecast cone of Tropical Storm Dorian, which is expected to become a hurricane in the coming days.

It’s still “too early to speculate” if Dorian will impact the Sunshine State, according to the National Weather Service, but forecasters are telling residents to be prepared just in case.

“I’ve been doing this 21 years, and I can tell you this track will change many, many times,” said WOFL-TV meteorologist Jayme King.  “It’ll scare us, we’ll be relieved, then we’ll be scared again. It’s important just to be ready to go should this come a little bit closer to the region as proposed right now.”

If the National Hurricane Center’s most recent prediction is correct, Dorian could become the first Atlantic hurricane of the 2019 season.

The storm is expected to blow through the Caribbean late Monday night and Tuesday before eventually reaching Puerto Rico, the island of Hispaniola and then Dominican Republic — possibly at peak strength — by Wednesday or Thursday, according to meteorologists.

If it continues its predicted course, NWS officials believe Dorian could slam into South Florida sometime Saturday. But they note how it’s still “far too early to determine” what impacts could occur as a result.

“A lot will depend upon its interaction with the high terrain of Hispaniola,” Dennis Feltgen, spokesperson for the National Hurricane Center, told reporters on Monday. “As of right now, residents do not yet need to activate their hurricane plan, but they should make sure they have one.”

WOFL meteorologist Glenn Richards said Dorian would likely grow into a hurricane “within the next 36 hours” and possibly wreak havoc on Floridians by early next week at the latest.

“I am expecting Dorian to weaken late week by wind shear and mountain disruption,” he explained. “But it may survive the attack and could continue towards Florida for your Sunday-Monday.”

Dorian is the fourth tropical storm to form of the 2019 Atlantic season. It was packing 80mph winds on Monday night and expected to strengthen into a Category 1 hurricane by the time it approaches Puerto Rico on Wednesday. The island nation was left devastated by Hurricane Maria in 2017 and is still recovering.

Barbados was forecast to be pounded by Dorian late Monday or early Tuesday. Schools and government buildings have been ordered closed by local officials.

The National Hurricane Center’s 5-day forecast cone, which was released Monday at 5 p.m., had Dorian reaching Florida as a tropical storm — but experts have noted how impact with land can have a drastic effect on how powerful it is. They are hoping to have a more accurate prediction by mid-week.

“While uncertainty is high, wind and rain impacts are possible in the Bahamas and Florida later this week and this weekend,” the hurricane center said. “Residents in these areas should monitor the progress of Dorian and ensure that they have their hurricane plan in place.”

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