* * * * *
                                        
                       “It's … it's headed right for us!”
                                        
> WILMA IS MOVING TOWARD THE NORTHEAST NEAR 18 MPH...30 KM/HR. A
> CONTINUED NORTHEASTWARD MOTION... WITH A GRADUAL INCREASE IN FORWARD
> SPEED... IS EXPECTED TONIGHT AND MONDAY. ON THIS TRACK...THE CENTER
> OF WILMA IS FORECAST TO MAKE LANDFALL ALONG THE SOUTHWESTERN COAST
> OF THE FLORIDA PENINSULA EARLY MONDAY MORNING.  HOWEVER... WILMA IS
> A LARGE HURRICANE AND TROPICAL STORM FORCE WINDS WILL REACH THE
> FLORIDA PENINSULA WELL BEFORE THE EYE MAKES LANDFALL. THE EASTERN
> PORTION OF THE EYEWALL... ACCOMPANIED BY THE STRONGEST WINDS...
> WILL REACH THE SOUTHWESTERN COAST OF FLORIDA ABOUT 2 HOURS BEFORE
> THE CENTER OF THE LARGE EYE MAKES LANDFALL.
> 
> MAXIMUM SUSTAINED WINDS ARE NEAR 115 MPH...185 KM/HR...WITH HIGHER
> GUSTS. WILMA IS A CATEGORY THREE HURRICANE ON THE SAFFIR-SIMPSON
> SCALE. LITTLE CHANGE IN STRENGTH IS EXPECTED UNTIL LANDFALL OCCURS
> ...AND WILMA WILL LIKELY MAKE LANDFALL AS A CATEGORY 3 HURRICANE.
> SOME SLOW WEAKENING IS FORECAST AS WILMA CROSSES THE SOUTHERN
> FLORIDA PENINSULA... BUT THE HURRICANE IS FORECAST TO STILL BE A
> SIGNIFICANT CATEGORY TWO HURRICANE BY THE TIME THE CENTER REACHES
> THE FLORIDA EAST COAST EARLY MONDAY AFTERNOON.
> 
> HURRICANE FORCE WINDS EXTEND OUTWARD UP TO  85 MILES...140 KM...
> FROM THE CENTER...AND TROPICAL STORM FORCE WINDS EXTEND OUTWARD UP
> TO 230 MILES...370 KM. SUSTAINED TROPICAL STORM-FORCE WINDS ARE
> OCCURRING OVER THE YUCATAN CHANNEL... WESTERN CUBA... AND THE LOWER
> AND MIDDLE FLORIDA KEYS. THESE WINDS SHOULD REACH THE SOUTHWESTERN
> FLORIDA COAST BY MIDNIGHT... WITH HURRICANE-FORCE WINDS REACHING
> THE LOWER KEYS AND SOUTHWESTERN FLORIDA COAST BEFORE SUNRISE.
> 

“Hur ricane WILMA Public Advisory [1]”

The eye of Hurricane Wilma [2] is about 40 miles across. This is one huge
storm. And the only thing that comes to mind is “Looks like I picked the
wrong week to quit amphetamines [3].”

[1] http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/text/refresh/MIATCPAT4+shtml/240241.shtml?
[2] http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/archive/2005/refresh/WILMA+shtml/032522.shtml?
[3] http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0080339/quotes

Email Sean Conner at sean@conman.org

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