Hurricane Dorian Makes Landfall in Bahamas As Category 5 Storm

Hurricane Dorian finally hit The Bahamas on Sunday afternoon as a Category 5 hurricane. The storm hit The Bahamas three times, according to the Weather Channel.

The first landfall was in Elbow Cay, in Abacos in northwestern part of the country at 12:40 EST.
The storm hit the island nation a second time at 2 p.m. EST on Great Abaco Island.
Dorian made a third landfall on the eastern part of Grand Baham Island around 11 p.m. EST.

Dorian is now tied for “second-highest sustained wind speed among all Atlantic hurricanes,” according to the Weather Channel. Its sustained winds hit 185 mph during Sunday’s landfall. Gusts over 200 mph are expected on parts of The Bahamas.

“This is probably the saddest and worst day for me to address the Bahamian people,” Prime Minister Hubert Minnis tweeted on Sunday. “We are facing a hurricane that we have never seen in The Bahamas. Please pray for us.”

Despite Dorian moving closer to the East Coast, The Bahamas are still in danger. The National Hurricane Center predicts that the nation will experience “a prolonged period of catastrophic winds and storm surge will affect the Abaco Islands and Grand Bahama Island for several more hours. Everyone there should take immediate shelter and not venture into the eye.”

In the eastern coast of Florida, “life-threatening storm surges and dangerous hurricane force winds” are expected until the middle of the week, according to the Center. “Strong winds and dangerous storm surge” is also predicted on the coasts of Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina.

Enough rain to produce flash flood conditions are also possible in all these areas, according to the National Hurricane Center.