At 8 am EDT...1200z...the eye of Hurricane Dennis was located near
latitude 20.9 north...longitude 79.5 west or about 230 miles...
370 km...southeast of Havana Cuba and about 285 miles...460 km...
south-southeast of Key West Florida.
Dennis is moving toward the northwest near 12 mph ...19 km/hr.
Dennis has made a slight wobble and has slowed down slightly during
the past 6 hours. However...a general motion to the northwest...
along with a gradual increase forward speed...is expected to resume
later today and continue during the next 24 hours. On this
track...the eye of Dennis will reach the south-central coast of Cuba
Maximum sustained winds remain near 135 mph...215 km/hr...with
higher gusts. Dennis is a category four hurricane on the
Saffir-Simpson scale. Some additional strengthening is possible
before landfall in Cuba.
Hurricane force winds extend outward up to 50 miles... 85 km...
from the center...and tropical storm force winds extend outward up
to 140 miles...220 km. The estimated minimum central pressure is 950 mb...28.05 inches.
Dennis is expected to produce total rainfall accumulations of 5 to
10 inches over Cuba...with local 15 inch amounts over the Sierra
maestra mountains of southeastern Cuba. Rainfall of 4 to 8 inches
is expected over extreme southern Florida...Jamaica and the Cayman
Islands. These rains could produce life-threatening flash floods
and mud slides.
Storm surge flooding of 5 to 7 feet above normal tide levels...
along with large and dangerous battering waves...are likely in
areas of onshore winds along the southeast coast of Cuba east of
Cabo cruz. A much larger storm surge of near 20 feet is possible
along the southern coast of Cuba west of Cabo cruz. A storm surge
of 3 to 6 feet is possible in the lower Florida Keys.
Repeating the 8 am EDT position...20.9 N... 79.5 W. Movement
toward...northwest near 12 mph. Maximum sustained winds...135 mph.
Minimum central pressure... 950 mb.
The next advisory will be issued by the National Hurricane Center
at 11 am EDT.