Hurricane Warning Issued For Central Florida
POSTED: 2:08 pm EDT September 1, 2004
UPDATED: 9:54 am EDT September 3, 2004
As Hurricane Frances heads for landfall somewhere on Florida's east coast Saturday afternoon or evening, about 2.5 million people are under evacuation orders.
Frances has weakened since Thursday, but it's still a strong Category 3 storm packing top sustained winds of 120 mph and the potential to push ashore waves up to 14 feet high.
With its imposing size and slow movement, Frances could ravage the state. Forecasters said the slower the storm moves across the ocean, the longer its winds and rain could linger. They warn Frances could bring 10 to 20 inches of rain.
About 14.6 million of Florida's 17 million people live in the areas under either a hurricane watch or warning.
The head of the Florida Highway Patrol said he's "very, very pleased" with the evacuation procedures Thursday and Friday. Col. Chris Knight said there are no problems with traffic flow Friday morning.
Conditions on Florida's major roads range from light to heavy. He gave a status report Friday morning at the state Emergency Operations Center:
* Florida Turnpike is still heavy -- but gas is available
* Beeline Expressway is very slow
* I-75 is moderate to heavy
* I-95 is moderate
* I-4 is very light
* I-10 is very light and moving at normal speeds
POSTED: 2:08 pm EDT September 1, 2004
UPDATED: 9:54 am EDT September 3, 2004
As Hurricane Frances heads for landfall somewhere on Florida's east coast Saturday afternoon or evening, about 2.5 million people are under evacuation orders.
Frances has weakened since Thursday, but it's still a strong Category 3 storm packing top sustained winds of 120 mph and the potential to push ashore waves up to 14 feet high.
With its imposing size and slow movement, Frances could ravage the state. Forecasters said the slower the storm moves across the ocean, the longer its winds and rain could linger. They warn Frances could bring 10 to 20 inches of rain.
About 14.6 million of Florida's 17 million people live in the areas under either a hurricane watch or warning.
The head of the Florida Highway Patrol said he's "very, very pleased" with the evacuation procedures Thursday and Friday. Col. Chris Knight said there are no problems with traffic flow Friday morning.
Conditions on Florida's major roads range from light to heavy. He gave a status report Friday morning at the state Emergency Operations Center:
* Florida Turnpike is still heavy -- but gas is available
* Beeline Expressway is very slow
* I-75 is moderate to heavy
* I-95 is moderate
* I-4 is very light
* I-10 is very light and moving at normal speeds
