I Like Ike?
I Like Ike?
It was only last week that Hanna swung through and drenched our Saturday night, and now Hurricane Ike is preparing to hit Texas. Ike, the fifth hurricane of the season, developed off the coast of Africa, and reached the status of Category 4 last Thursday with a low of 935 mb and peak winds at 145 mph (230 km/h). After drenching the Turks and Caicos Islands, it was downgraded to a Category 3; in Haiti its floodwaters and mudslides were the cause of 74 deaths; it dropped to a Category 1 after soaking Cuba. Ike now approaches Galveston with winds stretching 115 miles from the center. Storm surges are expected to reach up to 20 feet with 5-10 inches (125-250 mm) of rainfall on Saturday across the Louisiana and Texas coastline. It’ll weaken as it makes landfall turning up eastward through Arkansas and Missouri.
In our neighborhood though, we won’t have nearly as much drama, but we will have rain. High pressure over us will keep us dry on Friday, but instability on Friday night brings the potential for thunderstorms and a warm front will move our way on Saturday night and stick with us bringing humidity, possible rain and perhaps thunderstorms. With the warm front sitting over us on Sunday, expect high dewpoints in the 60s or 70s and scattered showers. Perhaps we’ll get a sample of the remnants of Ike as they are currently projected to move over us late Sunday or early Monday.
Extended Forecast
Today: Sunny with increasing cloud cover. Highs near 72°F (22°C).
Tonight: Increasing humidity with rain and possible thunderstorms in the evening. Lows near 65°F (18°C).
Saturday: Chance of rain in the morning, Highs around 73°F (23°C).
Saturday night: Increasing chance of rain. Lows near 63°F (17°C).
Sunday: Likely rain in the morning, with clouds in the afternoon. Highs near 75°F (24°C).