Dorian struck the northern Bahamas on Sunday as a Category 5 hurricane, and continued to menace the southeastern coast of the United States from Florida to the Carolinas.
Hurricane warnings and storm surge warnings and watches are posted for nearly all of Florida’s Atlantic coast. Georgia and South Carolina announced mandatory evacuations in coastal areas.
As Hurricane Dorian struck the northwestern Bahamas on Sunday, the National Hurricane Center said that the maximum sustained winds around the eye of the extremely dangerous storm had reached 185 miles an hour, making it a catastrophic storm with devastating winds.
Late in the evening, with the eye of the storm reaching Grand Bahama Island, the winds had slowed very slightly to 180 miles an hour. The center said further gradual weakening was forecast but fluctuations in intensity up or down could occur.
Early images and video emerging from the Abaco Islands showed scenes of devastation as the powerful, slow-moving storm churned its way through the islands. Forecasters said Dorian would continue to lash the islands for much of the day on Monday. Storm surges of as much as 18 to 23 feet were possible, enough to swamp many low-lying areas, and as much as 30 inches of rain could fall in some locations before the storm passes.
The hurricane center warned that no one should venture outdoors into the eye of the storm.
The hurricane will move dangerously close to the Florida east coast late Monday through Tuesday night, the hurricane center said.
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