Hurricane Joaquin Moving Away From Bermuda

Hurricane Joaquin Moving Away From Bermuda

Hurricane Joaquin is now moving away from Bermuda, after lashing the archipelago with wind gusts over 60 mph and heavy rainfall on Sunday.

Joaquin is now forecast to head across the open northern Atlantic Ocean while transitioning to a non-tropical low pressure system by Wednesday.

Winds gusted frequently over 50 mph Sunday in Bermuda, with the strongest official wind gust reaching 64 mph at the Bermuda International Airport shortly before 9 p.m. Gusts over 50 mph continued in Bermuda as of early Monday morning.

After Joaquin moves over the open waters of the Atlantic and transitions to a non-tropical low pressure system it may impact Europe with rain and gusty winds. There are differences in the computer forecast models in where it will head, with some bringing it towards the United Kingdom, while others take it in the direction of Portugal and Spain.Joaquin had another bout of intensification early Saturday. Utilizing an instrument for estimating surface winds, the stepped frequency microwave radiometer (SFMR), a Hurricane Hunter reconnaissance mission Saturday estimated surface winds of around 135 knots, or 155 mph just before noon. This was just 2 mph shy of becoming a Category 5 hurricane. By wind speed, Joaquin at that time was the strongest Atlantic hurricane since Hurricane Igor in 2010 also had 155 mph maximum winds. It has been over eight years since the last Category 5 hurricane in the Atlantic basin, Hurricane Felix in 2007.

Flooding from storm surge and torrential rainfall has been documented on Long Island and Acklins, among other central Bahamas locations. A Weather Underground personal weather station at Pitts Town, Crooked Island, reported winds up to 84 mph before it stopped reporting.

Visible Satellite and Bermuda Conditions

Hurricane Joaquin Information

Original Article: http://www.wunderground.com/news/hurricane-joaquin-bahamas-atlantic-east-coast-bermuda-2015