Isaias has strengthened into a category 1 hurricane, triggering storm watches and warnings. It's moving towards the Bahamas and eventually to South Florida.
At 200 AM EDT (0600 UTC), the center of Hurricane Isaias was located
near latitude 20.6 North, longitude 72.7 West. Isaias is moving
toward the northwest near 18 mph (30 km/h), and a generally
northwestward motion with some decrease in forward speed is expected
for the next couple of days followed by turn toward the
north-northwest. On the forecast track, the center of Isaias will
move near or over the Southeastern Bahamas overnight. Isaias is
forecast to be near the Central Bahamas Friday night and move near
or over the Northwestern Bahamas and near South Florida on Saturday.
Maximum sustained winds remain near 80 mph (130 km/h) with higher
gusts. Some strengthening is possible today, and Isaias is expected
to remain a hurricane for the next few days.
Hurricane-force winds extend outward up to 30 miles (45 km) from
the center and tropical-storm-force winds extend outward up to 240
miles (390 km).
Lake Okeechobee and the southeastern coast of Florida, from Ocean Reef to Sebastian Inlet are under a tropical storm watch. This includes Miami-Dade and Broward counties. Tropical storm conditions, such as heavy rains and isolated flooding, are possible over the weekend.
Photo credit: NOAA