Rainbands from the newly formed Hurricane Maria affected the British overseas territory of Bermuda on Thursday. A hurricane watch remains in effect for the island.
As of 8 a.m. AST (1200 GMT), the center of Maria was located about 200 miles (325 kilometers) west-southwest of Bermuda. It is moving toward the north-northeast at a speed of 26 miles (43 kilometers) per hour, with a turn to the northeast expected on Friday.
As of Thursday morning, Maria’s maximum sustained winds were near 65 miles (100 kilometers) per hour, with higher gusts. “Maria is forecast to weaken and become an extratropical cyclone by 36 to 48 hours,” NHC senior hurricane specialist Lixion Avila said.
According to iWeather Online’s Peter O’Donnell: “Latest indications show that Maria may make landfall around Placentia Bay in southeast Newfoundland around 1930 GMT (which would be 5 p.m. local time) and then move north towards Bonavista before being absorbed by a strong low near the Labrador coast.”
“On this track, the eastern Avalon peninsula including St. John’s NL could see several hours of very strong southerly winds veering westerly in the 100-140 km/hr range. Bonavista may see the same type of winds a few hours later. Further west in Newfoundland expect heavy rain, gale force winds from a variety of directions before storm force westerly winds develop overnight into Saturday. Rainfalls of 50 to 150 mms are likely.”
Maria is the thirteenth named storm of the 2011 Atlantic hurricane season and first emerged as a vigorous tropical wave in the far eastern Atlantic on September 5. The system quickly organized and was designated Tropical Depression Fourteen on September 6, before strengthening into a tropical storm the next day.
According to figures released last month, NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center is expecting an above-normal hurricane season in the Atlantic this year. The outlook calls for 14 to 19 named storms, with seven to ten becoming hurricanes and three to five expected to become a major hurricane (category 3 or higher).
An average Atlantic hurricane season produces 11 named storms, with six becoming hurricanes and two becoming major hurricanes. The Atlantic hurricane season runs from June 1 through November 30, with peak activity in September.
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