Jim Cantore is in Florida and warns of billions in damage from Ian, now a Cat 3 hurricane
Hurricane Ian remains a Category 3 storm after crossing Cuba Tuesday as it targets Florida.
Ian’s wind speed were clocked at 125 mph at the 8 a.m. ET advisory from the National Hurricane Center. At the 11 a.m. report, winds decreased to 115 mph after crossing Cuba. Winds increased to 120 mph by 2 p.m.
Ian is expected to intensify and could become a Category 4 hurricane, with winds of 130 mph, in the Gulf of Mexico.
The track remains uncertain, the NHC said Tuesday.
With hurricane force winds, a storm surge that could reach 10 feet and a foot of rain in some places, Hurricane Ian’s destruction could be into the multiple billions of dollars, Jim Cantore said on The Weather Channel.
Hurricane Katrina’s damages of $186 billion as it came ashore in South Mississippi in 2005 remains the costliest hurricane to hit the United States.
Mandatory evacuations are in effect 2.5 million of residents in the Tampa Bay area and along the west central coast of Florida as hurricane advisories, watches extend across Florida from the Gulf to the Atlantic.
Wind sheer and dry air to the north have moved the track farther south Tuesday, but there is still uncertainty about where landfall will occur.
The current forecast is for landfall Wednesday south of Tampa, near the Bradenton area in Manatee County. It is expected to slow down when it hits land and not clear Florida until Friday.
“There is a danger of life-threatening storm surge along much of the Florida west coast where a storm surge warning has been issued, with the highest risk from Fort Myers to the Tampa Bay region,” the NHC report says.
Tropical conditions are expected to reach the central Florida coast late Tuesday.
Rainfall is also a big concern. Central and northeast Florida could get 12 to 18 inches, the 5 p.m. report from the NHC syas, with isolated totals up to 24 inches. Eastern Georgia and coastal South Carolina are forecast to get 4 to 8 inches, with isolated totals up to 12 inches.
Forecasters expect considerable flooding across Central Florida into southern Georgia and coastal South Carolina.
Tornadoes also are possible through Wednesday across central and south Florida.
The Hurricane Hunters from Keesler Air Force Base in Biloxi continue to fly into the storm to gain more information about its speed and intensity.
This story was originally published September 27, 2022 at 8:41 AM.
