Hurricane Dorian to follow same devastating path as Hurricane Matthew that killed 47 in 2016 as FOUR US states in firing line
HURRICANE Dorian is hurtling towards four US states and is following the same deadly path as 2016 monster storm Matthew which killed 47.
The 150mph storm shifted its path and could graze Florida's coast and continue on to Georgia and North and South Carolina.
He said: “As it stands right now, coastal Florida has got to be ready for storm surge exceeding Matthew. And higher winds than Matthew. And heavier rain than Matthew.
Coastal areas could get 6 to 12 inches (15 to 30cm) of rain, with 18 inches (46cm) in some places, triggering life-threatening flash floods, the hurricane center said.
FEMA official Jeff Byard said Dorian is likely to "create a lot of havoc" for roads, power and other infrastructure.
Dorian's Forecast Timing
The Weather Channel
Saturday: Dorian is expected to slow its forward motion and will likely begin to impact the northwestern Bahamas with tropical storm-force winds by Saturday night.
Sunday: Dorian's hurricane siege will begin in the northwest Bahamas as it continues to slow down. Tropical storm-force winds may begin to arrive in parts of Florida. Large swells should begin to arrive at the coast from North Carolina to Florida.
Monday: Dorian may still be hammering the northwest Bahamas as it crawls slowly. Bands of rain, strong winds may affect parts of Florida. How strong the winds will be depends on how close the center of Dorian is to the Florida coast, which is uncertain at this time.
Tuesday-Thursday: Dorian is expected to move north, then northeast near the coasts of Florida, Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina. The exact track is very uncertain, ranging from a track far enough offshore to keep hurricane force winds away from land, to a landfall anywhere in this zone.
Friday-Next Saturday: Dorian is then expected to race off the Northeast Seaboard, but could track close enough to bring rain and some wind to the Virginia Tidewater, Nantucket, Martha's Vineyard and Cape Cod, before it heads toward the Canadian Maritimes by next weekend.
TRUMP ESTATE TARGET
The US President said his prized Mar-a-Lago estate is in the path of the potentially deadly storm, which is expected to be extremely destructive.
When asked how concerned he was about the hurricane threat to his resort, Trump said: “It would look like Mar-a-Lago is dead center but look Mar-a-Lago can handle itself.
“That's a very powerful place."
He added: "The thing I'm worried about is the state of Florida because ... this could be a record-setting hurricane.
“Now maybe things change. We're hoping for one element that might happen and that's that it makes a right turn and goes up north just prior to or equal to hitting shore.
“That would be great, but that's a pretty small percentage at this point."
Hurricanes have always been a part of Mar-a-Lago.
In 2005, Trump said he received a $17 million insurance payment for hurricane damage to the resort.
TOURIST ATTRACTIONS PREPARE
Disney World is also on alert as Hurricane Dorian barrels across the Atlantic Ocean towards Florida.
A spokesman said the Orlando resort is “operating under normal conditions” but they are “closely monitoring the path of the projected weather”.
The resort has cancelled weekend sporting events and closing Disney’s Blizzard Beach Water Park on Sunday.
They are also contacting guests with current and upcoming reservations at a number of campgrounds, cabins and villas.
Jessica Armesto and her one-year-old daughter, Mila, had planned to have breakfast with Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck and Goofy at Disney World.
Instead, Armesto decided to take shelter at her mother's hurricane-resistant house in Miami with its kitchen full of non-perishable foods.
"It felt like it was better to be safe than sorry, so we cancelled our plans," she said.
As Dorian closed in, the storm upended people's Labor Day weekend plans.
Major airlines began allowing travellers to change their reservations without a fee.
The big cruise lines began rerouting their ships.
The Bahamas is also under threat, with canned food and bottled water disappearing quickly and the sound of hammering echoed across the islands as people boarded up their homes.
Dorian was expected to hit by Sunday with the potential for life-threatening storm surge that could raise water levels 15 feet above normal.
"Do not be foolish and try to brave out this hurricane," Prime Minister Hubert Minnis said.
"The price you may pay for not evacuating is your life."
In Florida, the governor urged nursing homes to take precautions to prevent tragedies like the one during Hurricane Irma two years ago.
That storm knocked out the air conditioning at a facility in Hollywood and 12 patients died in the sweltering heat.
Four employees of the home were charged with manslaughter earlier this week.
DeSantis said the timely message from those arrests is: "It's your responsibility to make sure you have a plan in place to protect those folks."
At NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, NASA moved a 380-foot-high mobile launch platform to the safety of the colossal Vehicle Assembly Building, built to withstand 125 mph (200 kph) wind.
The launcher is for the mega rocket that NASA is developing to take astronauts to the moon.
The hurricane season typically peaks between mid-August and late October.
One of the most powerful storms ever to hit the US was on Labor Day in 1935.
When that unnamed Category 5 hurricane crashed ashore along Florida's Gulf Coast it was blamed for more than 400 deaths.
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