12 September, 2017
The U.S. National Hurricane Center says Katia's maximum sustained winds have dropped to 75 miles per hour as it hits land north of Tecolutla, in Veracruz state.
NHC noted that risky storm surge will raise water levels by as much as 5 to 7 feet above normal tide levels near and to the north of where Katia makes landfall.
Katia is the 11th named storm this Atlantic hurricane season, and follows both Hurricane Irma and Hurricane Jose - both of which are off to the east in the Atlantic.
Coincidentally, Irma, Jose, and Katia all share the same first letters of their names and are in nearly the exact same positions as their predecessors Igor, Julia, and Karl.
As for Tropical Storm Jose, it is now closely behind Irma, at around 1,000 miles east of the Lesser Antilles as of September 6 at 11 a.m. ET.
Meteorologists from the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) have predicted that around eight tropical storm formations will be created in the Pacific and five or six in the Atlantic during the 2017 hurricane season. The storm could yet turn northeast out into the Atlantic, or it could intensify as the week goes on.
Gov. Ricardo Rosselló urged Puerto Ricans in flood-prone areas to head to designated shelters. "Doesn't help to know another. hurricane is heading this way".
"Everything is blown out", he told CNN by phone near Road Town.
Hurricane Irma is not the only show in town.
National Hurricane Center, Eric Blake, said on Twitter that he had "never seen anything like this in modern record". "It is just a total devastation", Prime Minister Gaston Browne reportedly said in a statement, as reported by according to The Telegraph.
It's likely that all other older buildings there have at least been damaged, he said. In isolated parts of northern Veracruz, up to 15 inches of rain is possible. One, Guadeloupe, has about 405,000 residents.
The most exposed islands to Jose will be Barbuda, Saint-Martin, Sint Maarten & Anguilla.
Jose's maximum sustained winds are near 85 miles per hour with stronger gusts.
Katia is anticipated to drift toward the coast on Thursday.
Although much weaker than Irma, Jose is expected to strengthen to a category 4 hurricane in the coming days, forecasters say.
- It's too early to tell whether it will make landfall on the U.S. mainland.
The entire state of Florida remains inside the latest forecasts' margin of error.
A hurricane watch has been issued for Antigua and Barbuda. "(A) storm surge could cover your house.
- Floridians should heed any evacuation order, Gov. Rick Scott said Wednesday.
- Several high-profile sports games have been postponed in Florida because of the storm, including NFL's Buccaneers-Dolphins match that had been scheduled for Sunday in Miami.
