Monster storm Major Hurricane Michael has made landfall on the Florida panhandle, coming on-shore near Tyndall Air Force Base; the eyewall will extend between Panama City and St. Vincent Island. Maximum sustained winds are at 150mph, just 7mph shy of a Category 5 hurricane. After the storm is over, the National Hurricane Center will re-evaluate data to determine if Michael was a true Category 4 or 5 storm at landfall.
A short time ago, Dr. Louis Uccellini, Director of the National Weather Service, Tweeted, “Landfall of Hurricane Michael is imminent. THIS IS A WORST CASE SCENARIO for the Florida Panhandle!! Listen to your local emergency officials. Stay Inside & Survive!”
Reconnaissance aircraft reports that the minimum central pressure has dropped to 919mb. If that reading verifies, Michael is more intense than either Hurricane Katrina or Hurricane Andrew…and makes it only a hair less intense than Hurricane Camille. Michael is the most powerful hurricane to ever strike this part of Florida on record.
