At 1100 PM AST (0300 UTC), the center of Hurricane Irma was located
near latitude 19.4 North, longitude 66.8 West. Irma is moving toward
the west-northwest near 16 mph (26 km/h), and this general motion is
expected to continue for the next couple of days. On the forecast
track, the extremely dangerous core of Irma will continue to pass
just north of Puerto Rico tonight, pass near or just north of the
coast of Hispaniola Thursday, and be near the Turks and Caicos and
southeastern Bahamas by Thursday evening.
Maximum sustained winds are near 185 mph (295 km/h) with higher
gusts. Irma is a category 5 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson
Hurricane Wind Scale. Some fluctuations in intensity are likely
during the next day or two, but Irma is forecast to remain a
powerful category 4 or 5 hurricane during the next couple of days.
Hurricane-force winds extend outward up to 50 miles (85 km) from the
center and tropical-storm-force winds extend outward up to 185 miles
(295 km).
The Hurricane Warning for the U.S. and British Virgin Islands has
been discontinued.
SUMMARY OF WATCHES AND WARNINGS IN EFFECT:
A Hurricane Warning is in effect for...
* Puerto Rico, Vieques, and Culebra
* Dominican Republic from Cabo Engano to the northern border with
Haiti
* Haiti from the northern border with the Dominican Republic to Le
Mole St. Nicholas
* Southeastern Bahamas and the Turks and Caicos Islands
* Central Bahamas
A Hurricane Watch is in effect for...
* Cuba from Matanzas province eastward to Guantanamo province
* Northwestern Bahamas
A Tropical Storm Warning is in effect for...
* Dominican Republic from south of Cabo Engano westward to the
southern border with Haiti
* Haiti from south of Le Mole St. Nicholas to Port-Au-Prince
* Cuba provinces of Guantanamo, Holguin, and Las Tunas