Latest information and route – Telemundo Miami (51)

MIAMI, Florida – Hurricane Nicole reached hurricane strength Wednesday afternoon as it slammed into Grand Bahama Island and headed toward Florida.

According to the National Hurricane Center’s (NHC) Wednesday 6:00 PM ET bulletin, the system strengthened into a hurricane while making landfall in Grand Bahama.

The structure was located 25 miles east-northeast of Freeport, Grand Bahama, and 105 miles east of West Palm Beach, Florida.

The tornado had maximum sustained winds of 75 mph and was moving west at 12 mph.

Notifications and monitoring are in place

Tornado warning

• Abacos, Perry, Bimini and Grand Bahama Islands in the northwestern Bahamas
• Boca Raton to the Flagler/Volusia County line, Florida

Tropical Storm Warning

• Bimini, in the northwestern Bahamas
• From Hallandale Beach to Boca Raton, Florida
• From the Flagler/Volusia County border to the South Santee River, South Carolina
• Indian Pass north of Bonita Beach, Florida
• Lake Okeechobee

Storm surge warning

• North Palm Beach, Florida, Altamaha Sound, Georgia
• Mouth of the St. Johns River in Georgetown, Florida
• From the Anclod River, Florida to the Ochlogonie River, Florida

Hurricane Watch

• From Hallandale Beach to Boca Raton, Florida
• Lake Okeechobee

Storm surge monitoring

• Oglegonee River to Indian Pass, Florida
• South of North Palm Beach to Hallandale Beach, Florida
• Altamaha Sound, Georgia south of Santee River, South Carolina

Future plans for Hurricane Nicole

According to the NHC, the center of Nicole will move near Grand Bahama Island and the northwestern Bahamas between late afternoon and evening on Wednesday, then move toward the east coast of Florida during the evening hours, possibly with hurricane strength.

The storm will then move across central and northern Florida, reaching southern Georgia on Thursday and the Carolinas on Friday.

Nicole is expected to strengthen slightly on Wednesday and possibly become a hurricane before reaching Florida’s east coast overnight. It will then weaken as it moves over Florida and the southeastern United States Thursday through Friday.

It is likely to become a post-tropical cyclone by Friday afternoon.

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A hurricane in November in Florida is something unusual

November is the last month of hurricane season, and tropical activity generally begins to wane. However, the 2022 hurricane season has been pushed back and all of the storms impacting the Atlantic this year formed after August.

Florida has been hit by tropical systems in November nine times in the past 170 years, a 5% chance in any given year.

Seven of those nine are from the Western Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico. That makes this week’s developing system, if it converges and hits Florida, extremely rare.

For now, the forecast indicates that rain will increase in frequency and intensity as we approach the middle of the week. It is increasingly windy, dangerous sea conditions and a high risk of rip currents.

According to an analysis by meteorologist John Morales, winds and tides combined with a full moon and rising sea levels to create significant coastal flooding make climate change worse. Communities near Fort Lauderdale, Miami Beach, Miami Shores, Biscayne Boulevard, Edgewater, Coconut Grove, Coral Gables and the Florida Keys should prepare for flooding.

Flooding continues in Volusia County. In the Deltona area, residents are complaining that more garbage is not being picked up.