Hurricane Irene gaining strength

Airlines began canceling flights to wind-whipped San Juan, the Dominican Republic braced for dangerous flooding and the U.S. Navy pulled its hospital ship from Haitian waters Sunday as fast-moving Tropical Storm Irene churned across the Northwestern Caribbean.

Though winds stayed at 50 mph for most of the day, by 11 p.m. the National Hurricane Center in West Miami-Dade County said that maximum sustained winds were up to 70 mph with higher gusts. Center forecasters also said Irene was slowly organizing and it could become the season’s first hurricane by today after it crosses Puerto Rico and approaches the southeastern tip of the Dominican Republic.
From there, Irene’s path was less certain, with South Florida -- but also much of south Atlantic Coast -- potentially in its sights as early as Thursday.


Read more: http://www.bradenton.com/2011/08/22/3434961/irene-gaining-strength.html#ixzz1Vk4nI5Cv


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