Ernesto struck Bermuda as a Category 1 storm Saturday morning. Image courtesy of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Aug. 17 (UPI) — Ernesto made landfall on Bermuda as a Category 1 hurricane on Saturday morning with “dangerous beach conditions” to continue along the East Coast through early next week, according to the National Hurricane Center.
Ernesto was forecast to move into Canada by Monday.
NHC said in its 5 a.m. update Ernesto became a hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 85 mph.
In the 11 a.m. briefing, NHC said sustained winds were 80 mph and Ernest was moving north-northeast at 9 mph, about 50 miles north-northeast of Bermuda and about 1,125 miles southwest of Cape Race, Newfoundland, Canada. A hurricane warning remains in effect for the island as hurricane-force winds extend up to 70 miles from the center.
NHC said hurricane-force gusts are possible on Bermuda for a few more hours, and some re-intensification is possible late in the weekend before weakening begins Monday.
On the forecast track, the center of Ernesto is expected to slowly depart Bermuda and move near or east of Newfoundland, Canada, on Monday night.
“Significant coastal flooding is still possible on Bermuda in areas of onshore winds,” NHC said. “Near the coast, the surge will be accompanied by large and destructive waves.”
Total rain accumulations of 6 to 9 inches on Bermuda “will likely result in considerable life-threatening flash flooding, especially in low-lying areas on the island,” according to NHC.
And swells generated are affecting portions of the Bahamas, Bermuda, and the East Coast of the United States. These swells will likely reach portions of Atlantic Canada later Saturday.
“While many of the structures on the islands are made of stone and can withstand a formidable hurricane, power outages will occur, with the potential for significant property damage to non-stone structures,” Accuweather.com Senior Meteorologist Alex Sosnowski said.
The storm strengthened into a hurricane Wednesday, continued intensifying throughout Thursday and hit Category 2 status Thursday night with sustained winds of 100 mph.
Ernesto’s center never made landfall over Puerto Rico or the U.S. Virgin Islands it knocked out power to hundreds of thousands of customers. On Saturday, 8,088 remained without power on U.S. Virgin Islands, according to Poweroutages.us.
Heavy rain soaked the Virgin Islands on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Debby was a Category 1 storm that made landfall in the Florida Panhandle and then moved through the U.S. Atlantic Coast last week causing torrential rain and widespread, record flooding up the eastern seaboard.
Beryl struck parts of the Caribbean, the Yucatán Peninsula and the Gulf Coast of the United States in late June and early July.
Two tropical storms were in the Gulf of Mexico in June: Cindy and Alberto.