Hurricane_Isabel

Pre-Landfall 1 | Summary
Posting Date: September 15, 2003, 7:30:00 PM

Hurricane Isabel, the ninth named storm of the 2003 Atlantic hurricane season and the strongest storm to develop in the Atlantic since Hurricane Andrew in 1992, is expected to make landfall along the Mid-Atlantic coast within the next 72 hours (based on the latest information from the National Hurricane Center). As of 5 p.m. EDT Monday evening, September 15, Isabel was positioned about 740 miles (1190 km) south-southeast of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, and moving toward the northwest at about 8 mph (13 kph). Current maximum sustained winds are about 125 mph (205 kph) with higher gusts. Minimum central pressure is estimated at 949 mb, making Isabel a Category 3 storm on the Saffir-Simpson Intensity Scale. Isabel formed on September 6 as a tropical storm in the eastern Atlantic, about 625 miles west of the southern Cape Verde Islands. The storm reached Category 5 intensity on September 11 with sustained winds of 160 mph (260 kph). The AIR hurricane team will continue to monitor events in the area and will post additional information as necessary.

Pre-Landfall 1 | Downloads
Posting Date: September 15, 2003, 7:30:00 PM