Ophelia Strengthens and Slowly Moves Toward Coast

Posted on September 13, 2005

Ophelia is once again a hurricane after stregthening over the gulfstream. The storm is moving very slowly toward the coasts of South and North Carolina. The slow movement will make Ophelia a long duration event for South and North Carolina residents that wind up in her path. Here is an excerpt from the National Hurricane Center's 11 PM EST discussion.

THIS TROUGH WILL NOT BE DEEP ENOUGH TO SIGNIFICANTLY ACCELERATE THE CYCLONE... HOWEVER...AND THIS IS LIKELY TO RESULT IN AN EXCRUCIATINGLY LONG PASSAGE OF THE HURRICANE ALONG THE NORTH CAROLINA COAST OVER THE NEXT COUPLE OF DAYS. THE SLOW MOTION...COUPLED WITH THE RATHER LARGE RADIUS OF MAXIMUM WIND...IS EXPECTED TO RESULT IN EXTENDED PERIODS OF HEAVY RAINFALL...WITH WINDS AT OR NEAR HURRICANE FORCE...OVER MUCH OF THE WARNING AREA.

The storm is large with hurricane force winds extending out for 50 miles and tropical storm force winds extending out for 140 miles. The Associated Press reports that vulnerable islands on the coast of North Carolina have been evacuated. The latest updates from the NHC can be found here.