Michael is now forecast by the National Hurricane Center to reach Category 4 strength as it heads towards the Florida Panhandle. 0 Category 4-5 hurricanes on record (since 1851) have made landfall in the Florida Panhandle.
Packing 145 mph winds
[h=1]Why Hurricane Michael is a monster like no other[/h]
[FONT="]Even those jaded by hurricanes have never seen anything like this.[/FONT]
[FONT="]For the first time, a Category 4 hurricane is on track to slam the Florida Panhandle. And it's bringing an onslaught of deadly hazards.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Track Hurricane Michael[/FONT]
[FONT="]"Unfortunately, this is a hurricane of the worst kind," said Brock Long, head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Here's what makes Hurricane Michael especially dangerous:[/FONT]
[h=3]The Panhandle could see its strongest hurricane ever[/h][FONT="]Michael rapidly intensified to a Category 4 hurricane overnight. By Wednesday morning, it was hurling 145-mph winds.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Even scarier, Michael could get stronger before making landfall Wednesday afternoon.[/FONT]
[FONT="]The storm will likely bring "winds that are above typical building codes," Long said.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Hurricane Andrew in 1992 inspired tougher building codes in Florida. But many older houses aren't built to withstand a beast like Michael.[/FONT]
[FONT="]"You're going to see roofs off houses. You're going to see houses collapsing," said Ken Graham, director of the National Hurricane Center.
[/FONT]
[h=3]Pine trees could become flying weapons[/h][FONT="]Florida's Panhandle is covered with thousands of pine trees. And with winds topping 140 mph, those trees could turn into violent projectiles.[/FONT]
[FONT="]"You get those kinds of winds, it's catastrophic damage to the trees' structure," Graham said.[/FONT]
[FONT="]And with downed trees come power outages.[/FONT]
[FONT="]"This could bring down thousands and thousands of those pine trees here -- not only making all the damage along the coast but inland as well," CNN meteorologist Chad Myers said.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Graham said because this storm is "absolutely overwhelming," power outages could last weeks.[/FONT]
[h=3]Storm surges could be deadly[/h][FONT="]Michael will spawn massive storm surges -- or walls of ocean water -- as high as 14 feet, forecasters said.
[/FONT]
[FONT="]"Half of the fatalities in these tropical systems occur with the storm surge," Graham said.[/FONT]
[FONT="]The FEMA chief said anyone asked to evacuate needs to do so immediately.[/FONT]
[FONT="]"This is nothing to play around with," Long said. "Those who stick around and experience storm surge are less likely to live to tell about it."[/FONT]
[h=3]Cities far inland will feel an actual hurricane[/h][FONT="]Many hurricanes sputter out after they hit land and lose the title of hurricane. But not Michael.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Michael will keep plowing through the Southeast as a hurricane, with winds topping 73 mph as it crosses into Georgia.[/FONT]
[FONT="]"Because of the forward movement -- the decent forward movement it has -- you're going to see a hurricane stay intact through southwest and central Georgia," Long said.[/FONT]
[FONT="]"And then you're going to see rainfall through South and North Carolina, dumping 4 to 6 inches of rain in rivers that are already saturated and haven't really receded much from Florence a few weeks ago."[/FONT]
[h=3]The hurricane could spawn tornadoes, too[/h][FONT="]As if one cyclone weren't enough, Hurricane Michael could cause tornadoes in several states.[/FONT]
[FONT="]"A few tornadoes will be possible across parts of the Florida Panhandle and the northern Florida Peninsula through this afternoon," the National Hurricane Center said Wednesday.[/FONT]
[FONT="]"This risk (of tornadoes) will spread into parts of central and southern Georgia and southern South Carolina this afternoon and tonight."[/FONT]
[FONT="]Hurricanes are good at producing tornadoes because they cause a lot of vertical shear -- or differences in wind direction and speed at different heights.[/FONT]
[FONT="]And the risk of tornadoes is far-reaching. Most tornadoes spawned by tropical cyclones strike about 50 to 200 miles from the hurricane's center, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Even those jaded by hurricanes have never seen anything like this.[/FONT]
[FONT="]For the first time, a Category 4 hurricane is on track to slam the Florida Panhandle. And it's bringing an onslaught of deadly hazards.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Track Hurricane Michael[/FONT]
[FONT="]"Unfortunately, this is a hurricane of the worst kind," said Brock Long, head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Here's what makes Hurricane Michael especially dangerous:[/FONT]
[h=3]The Panhandle could see its strongest hurricane ever[/h][FONT="]Michael rapidly intensified to a Category 4 hurricane overnight. By Wednesday morning, it was hurling 145-mph winds.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Even scarier, Michael could get stronger before making landfall Wednesday afternoon.[/FONT]
[FONT="]The storm will likely bring "winds that are above typical building codes," Long said.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Hurricane Andrew in 1992 inspired tougher building codes in Florida. But many older houses aren't built to withstand a beast like Michael.[/FONT]
[FONT="]"You're going to see roofs off houses. You're going to see houses collapsing," said Ken Graham, director of the National Hurricane Center.
[/FONT]
[h=3]Pine trees could become flying weapons[/h][FONT="]Florida's Panhandle is covered with thousands of pine trees. And with winds topping 140 mph, those trees could turn into violent projectiles.[/FONT]
[FONT="]"You get those kinds of winds, it's catastrophic damage to the trees' structure," Graham said.[/FONT]
[FONT="]And with downed trees come power outages.[/FONT]
[FONT="]"This could bring down thousands and thousands of those pine trees here -- not only making all the damage along the coast but inland as well," CNN meteorologist Chad Myers said.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Graham said because this storm is "absolutely overwhelming," power outages could last weeks.[/FONT]
[h=3]Storm surges could be deadly[/h][FONT="]Michael will spawn massive storm surges -- or walls of ocean water -- as high as 14 feet, forecasters said.
[/FONT]
[FONT="]"Half of the fatalities in these tropical systems occur with the storm surge," Graham said.[/FONT]
[FONT="]The FEMA chief said anyone asked to evacuate needs to do so immediately.[/FONT]
[FONT="]"This is nothing to play around with," Long said. "Those who stick around and experience storm surge are less likely to live to tell about it."[/FONT]
[h=3]Cities far inland will feel an actual hurricane[/h][FONT="]Many hurricanes sputter out after they hit land and lose the title of hurricane. But not Michael.[/FONT]
[FONT="]Michael will keep plowing through the Southeast as a hurricane, with winds topping 73 mph as it crosses into Georgia.[/FONT]
[FONT="]"Because of the forward movement -- the decent forward movement it has -- you're going to see a hurricane stay intact through southwest and central Georgia," Long said.[/FONT]
[FONT="]"And then you're going to see rainfall through South and North Carolina, dumping 4 to 6 inches of rain in rivers that are already saturated and haven't really receded much from Florence a few weeks ago."[/FONT]
[h=3]The hurricane could spawn tornadoes, too[/h][FONT="]As if one cyclone weren't enough, Hurricane Michael could cause tornadoes in several states.[/FONT]
[FONT="]"A few tornadoes will be possible across parts of the Florida Panhandle and the northern Florida Peninsula through this afternoon," the National Hurricane Center said Wednesday.[/FONT]
[FONT="]"This risk (of tornadoes) will spread into parts of central and southern Georgia and southern South Carolina this afternoon and tonight."[/FONT]
[FONT="]Hurricanes are good at producing tornadoes because they cause a lot of vertical shear -- or differences in wind direction and speed at different heights.[/FONT]
[FONT="]And the risk of tornadoes is far-reaching. Most tornadoes spawned by tropical cyclones strike about 50 to 200 miles from the hurricane's center, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said.[/FONT]
Be safe all.
Live weather channel
