Hurricane Joaquin reaches Category 3, continues to strengthen

On Wednesday evening, a Hurricane Hunters flight found that winds have increased to near 115 mph within the storm, its center located a few hundred miles east of the Bahamas. Its maximum sustained winds of 80 miles per hour (130 kph) were just above hurricane threshold, but forecasters predicted it would soon become stronger.

Joaquin is moving toward the southwest near 6 mph and this general motion is expected to continue over the next 24 hours.

“Because landfall, if it occurs, is still more than three days away, it is too early to talk about specific wind, rain, or surge impacts from Joaquin in the United States”, the hurricane center said. Hurricane-strength winds are forecast to reach the islands early tomorrow.

RAINFALL: Joaquin is expected to produce total rain accumulations of 10 to 15 inches over the central Bahamas with isolated maximum amounts of 20 inches are possible.

“The latest run of the European Model has the storm moving out to sea well off the east coast, while the GFS has Joaquin getting absorbed by a developing cut-off low in the Southeastern States while a ridge of high pressure builds in the Western Atlantic”.

The weather forecast through Saturday may send you to the dictionary to see how many synonyms it has for “yuck” as the Triangle gets squeezed between a cold front to the west and the newly formed Hurricane Joaquin.

Map of precipitable water for Friday showing how moisture will be angled from Joaquin right into the Carolinas.

“Preparations to protect life and property should be rushed to completion”, forecasters wrote about the Bahamas in their 5 p.m. update.

But the bigger concern remained where the still-strengthening storm would head next after an expected sharp turn to the north in the next few days. It all depends on the path of Hurricane Joaquin. Joaquin now has sustained winds of 120 miles an hour and is forecasted to make landfall along the East Coast sometime late Sunday into Monday.

Meteorologist Andrew Wilson will fly with the Hurricane Hunters overnight tonight into Thursday morning.

The National Weather Service is warning swimmers about the high risk of rip currents along Virginia and northeastern North Carolina. It will be as if a garden hose has been pointed at the East Coast, from Charlotte, North Carolina to Portland, Maine. Residents on the East Coast should pay close attention to the forecast now through the weekend, Weather.com advised.