Ireland and Britain brace for unusual European hurricane – Ophelia is the most-eastern Category 3 Atlantic hurricane on record
By Susanne Fowler
15 October 2017
LONDON (The New York Times) — Rain is no stranger to Ireland, but hurricanes?Hurricane Ophelia, the 10th hurricane of the Atlantic season, was spinning toward Ireland on Sunday, bringing with it the potential for structural damage, significant coastal flooding and dangerously high seas.The National Hurricane Center in Miami said on Sunday that, as of 11 a.m. Atlantic Standard Time, Ophelia had slowed to a Category 1 but was still dangerous, with top sustained winds near 90 miles an hour, with stronger gusts. On Saturday, the center had described it as a Category 3 hurricane with top winds of 115 miles an hour.“Preparations to protect lives and property should be rushed to completion by this afternoon,” the center said on Sunday. A storm surge along the coast “will be accompanied by large and destructive waves,” it said.In London, the Met Office, Britain’s meteorological service, said that Ophelia had been the most-eastern Category 3 Atlantic hurricane on record. […]The last time weather watchers recorded 10 consecutive Atlantic hurricanes was in 1893. [more]
