Hurricane Wilma heads for Gulf of Mexico
Hurricane Wilma strengthened in the Caribbean Tuesday and headed toward the Gulf of Mexico, where it seemed likely to spare battered U.S. oil and gas fields but threatened storm-weary Florida.
The rapidly intensifying storm also menaced Honduras and Nicaragua with up to 10 inches of rain, compounding the woes of Central America. More than 1,000 people in Guatemala and El Salvador were killed by landslides and floods triggered by Hurricane Stan this month.
Wilma was expected to strengthen into a major hurricane with winds of more than 110 mph by Thursday and its likely long-range forecast track, which has a wide margin of error, had it crossing southern Florida on Saturday.
The storm was not expected to threaten New Orleans or southern Mississippi, where Hurricane Katrina killed more than 1,200 people and caused insured damage estimated at more than $30 billion in late August. Katrina was followed in September by Hurricane Rita.
More: signonsandiego.com
Wilma may become hurricane, heads for Gulf of Mexico
Four of seven major weather models predict Tropical Storm Wilma, which could become a hurricane by Tuesday, will head for the Gulf Coast of Florida.
Earlier Monday morning, most of the models forecast the storm would crash into the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico or Belize later this week.
By late morning, most of the forecasts showed the storm would turn north toward western Cuba and Florida's Gulf Coast.
The U.S. National Hurricane Center still forecast the storm would graze the northeastern tip of the Yucatan and enter the Gulf of Mexico where it could
Shell, BP evacuate Gulf of Mexico workers due to Hurricane Katrina
Royal Dutch Shell PLC and BP PLC have evacuated workers from their platforms in the Gulf of Mexico as Hurricane Katrina heads towards the area.
Shell, in a statement, said it will evacuate around 120 non-essential staff from the eastern part of its Gulf operations as a 'precaution'.
A BP spokesman said it will also evacuate a still undetermined number of workers.
Both companies said the move will not affect their Gulf production.
Katrina came ashore in Florida on Thursday, killing at least three people and leaving about 1.5 mln
UPDATE 5-Fierce Hurricane Wilma threatens Mexico, Fla.
Hurricane Wilma became the fiercest Atlantic hurricane ever seen as it churned toward western Cuba and Mexico's Yucatan peninsula on Wednesday, and threatened densely populated Florida after killing 10 people in Haiti.
The season's record-tying 21st storm, fueled by the warm waters of the northwest Caribbean Sea, strengthened with unprecedented speed into a Category 5 hurricane, the top rank on the five-step scale of hurricane intensity.
Oil and gas facilities in the Gulf of Mexico were expected to escape this storm but Florida's orange groves were at risk.
Early Wednesday, a U.S. Air Force reconnaissance plane measured
Hurricane Wilma Scrubs Mexico's MTV Awards
Hurricane Wilma Forces MTV to Postpone Latin American Music Awards; New Date Not Set
The approach of Hurricane Wilma has forced MTV to postpone its Latin American music video awards ceremony, which had been scheduled for Mexico's Playa del Carmen resort.
Dulce Gordillo, MTV's Mexico spokeswoman, confirmed the postponement and said a new date for the show hadn't been set.
The cable network had shifted the program from Thursday to Wednesday to avoid the hurricane, which was forecast to pass close by Mexico's Caribbean coast Friday.
More: abcnews.go.com
Six dead as Wilma pounds Mexico
At least six people have died as Hurricane Wilma continues to pound the coast of Mexico.
The storm has flooded the resort of Cancun, cutting off roads, flattening homes and leaving much of the area without electricity.
Tens of thousands of people are now sheltering in overcrowded schools and gymnasiums in the area.
Weather forecasters say Wilma has weakened, but might get stronger again as it slowly heads towards Florida.
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On Saturday officials on the Florida Keys ordered 80,000 people to evacuate the islands before the storm
Oil leaps as Wilma menaces Gulf of Mexico
Oil leapt more than $1 yesterday as another tropical storm gathered strength in the Caribbean, menacing US rigs and refineries already rocked by the most active hurricane season in decades.
Tropical Storm Wilma, the 21st named storm this year, could move into the oil-rich Gulf of Mexico by the end of the week, the US National Hurricane Centre said yesterday.
Rising tension in Iran, the world’s fourth-biggest oil producer, also buoyed prices after twin bombings in the southwest oil city of Ahvaz. Tehran blamed the blasts on Britain.
US crude was up $1,14
Wilma slams Mexico, threatens Florida
In the early afternoon on Friday, Oct. 21, 2005, Hurricane Wilma was moving slowly northwest with the eye 35 miles off the coast of Cozumel, Mexico on the Yucatan peninsula. The Category 4 hurricane is currently packing 145 mph winds with higher-speed gusts. Wilma is expected to turn northeast toward southern Florida while dropping as much as 40 inches of rain in parts of Cuba along the way.
With Wilma, the Atlantic Ocean's 21st named storm this year, the 2005 season has tied the record for the most named storms in a year. Pressure readings on
In the early afternoon on Friday, Oct. 21, 2005, Hurricane Wilma was moving slowly northwest with the eye 35 miles off the coast of Cozumel, Mexico on the Yucatan peninsula. The Category 4 hurricane is currently packing 145 mph winds with higher-speed gusts. Wilma is expected to turn northeast toward southern Florida while dropping as much as 40 inches of rain in parts of Cuba along the way.
With Wilma, the Atlantic Ocean's 21st named storm this year, the 2005 season has tied the record for the most named storms in a year. Pressure readings on Wednesday broke the record
Hurricane Wilma Approaches Landfall in Mexico
A slow-moving and unpredictable Hurricane Wilma began pounding Mexico this morning with winds of 145 miles an hour (233 kilometers an hour).
"As it stands now, there will be a significant impact from this system over the northeastern coast of the Yucatán Peninsula," said Dave Roberts, a U.S. Navy forecaster at the National Hurricane Center in Miami.
Keith Blackwell, hurricane researcher at the University of South Alabama's Coastal Weather Research Center, said the storm will stall over the peninsula for a day or more.
That stalling will cause massive damage and allow the storm to
Oil leaps as new storm menaces Gulf of Mexico
Oil leapt by $1.50 on Monday as another tropical storm gathered strength in the Caribbean and menaced US rigs and refineries already rocked by the most active hurricane season in decades. Tropical Storm Wilma, the 21st named storm this year, formed from a depression in the Caribbean and could move into the oil-rich Gulf of Mexico by the end of the week, the US National Hurricane Center said on its website.
The last time there were so many named storms was 1933. Vulnerable oil platforms and refineries along the Gulf of Mexico
