Laura Blows up Overnight: Likely Cat 4
August 26, 2020
Dr Jeff Masters is now my colleague writing for Yale Climate Connections. I spoke to him in 2018 about, among other things, rapid intensification of hurricanes.
UPDATE:
Just got off the phone with Jeff, and he’s working on an update which will be available soon.
He says Laura’s winds increased 40 mph in 18 hours, which qualifies as “rapid intensification”. It took a while to form an eye, but once it did, it was off to the races.
Update soon.
August 26, 2020 at 10:21 am
Katrina did the same thing in 2005 (just about 15 years ago to the day)—-will Laura go to Cat 5? Rita a month later weakened and came ashore at Cat 3—-still did much damage. Have a friend in Galveston who evacuated—-will get a first hand from them once it’s over.
August 26, 2020 at 4:43 pm
I think the big news for this major hurricane is the fast forward motion, bringing hurricane-force winds further inland than those people have seen for generations.
I expect a major change in the (ever more fragile) coastline from this.