000 WTUS82 KMLB 131951 HLSMLB AMZ550-555-570-575-FLZ041-044>047-053-054-058-059-064-141-144-147- 132300- HURRICANE LOCAL STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MELBOURNE FL 350 PM EDT FRI AUG 13 2004 ...MAJOR INLAND HURRICANE WIND EVENT TO CROSS EAST CENTRAL FLORIDA... ...HURRICANE WARNINGS RAISED FOR PORTIONS OF EAST CENTRAL FLORIDA COAST... ...AREAS AFFECTED... THIS HURRICANE LOCAL STATEMENT RECOMMENDS ACTIONS TO BE TAKEN BY RESIDENTS OF THE FOLLOWING COUNTIES...VOLUSIA...LAKE...SEMINOLE... ORANGE...BREVARD...OSCEOLA...INDIAN RIVER...SAINT LUCIE...MARTIN AND OKEECHOBEE. ...WATCHES AND WARNINGS... HURRICANE WARNING ISSUED FOR EAST CENTRAL FLORIDA COAST FROM COCOA BEACH NORTHWARD TO FLAGLER BEACH. TROPICAL STORM WARNING IN EFFECT FROM JUPITER INLET TO COCOA BEACH... WITH A TROPICAL STORM WARNING ALSO IN EFFECT FOR LAKE OKEECHOBEE. INLAND HURRICANE WIND WARNINGS ISSUED FOR ALL INTERIOR COUNTIES OF EAST CENTRAL FLORIDA... A FLOOD WATCH IS IN EFFECT FOR ALL OF EAST CENTRAL FLORIDA THROUGH SATURDAY. A TORNADO WATCH REMAINS IN EFFECT FOR ALL OF EAST CENTRAL FLORIDA UNTIL 2 AM SATURDAY. ...STORM INFORMATION... AT 3 PM CHARLIE WAS ABOUT TO MAKE LAND FALL NEAR FORT MYERS AND MOVE NORTHEAST ACROSS THE FLORIDA PENINSULA. HURRICANE FORCE WINDS NEAR THE CENTER OF CHARLEY ARE EXPECTED TO MOVE ACROSS POLK COUNTY AND INTO THE KISSIMMEE ORLANDO AREA BY 7 PM THIS EVENING AND THE REST OF EAST CENTRAL FLORIDA DURING THE NIGHT. AS HURRICANE FORCE WINDS APPROACH KISSIMMEE AND ORLANDO STRONG SOUTH TO SOUTHEAST WINDS WILL INCREASE TO 50 TO 60 MPH. DEPENDING ON THE EXACT TRACK OF CHARLEY... HURRICANE FORCE WINDS OF NEAR 100 MPH WILL OCCUR IN A 50 TO 60 MILE WIDE PATH ACROSS THE AREA. SINCE THE EXACT PATH IS UNCERTAIN AT THIS TIME...EVERYONE ACROSS LAKE ORANGE OSCEOLA AND SEMINOLE COUNTIES SHOULD PREPARE FOR DANGEROUS HURRICANE FORCE WINDS. BY ABOUT 11 PM HURRICANE FORCE WINDS WILL CROSS INTO VOLUSIA AND NORTHERN BREVARD COUNTIES. ...PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... THE GREATEST RISK TO LIFE IN THESE AREAS WILL BE TO THOSE IN TRAILERS ...RECREATIONAL VEHICLES...AND MANUFACTURED HOMES. ANOTHER SERIOUS RISK THIS EVENING WILL BE FROM FALLING TREES. IT HAS BEEN A NUMBER OF YEARS SINCE THE AREA HAS BEEN SWEPT BY HIGH WINDS...SO A GREAT NUMBER OF TREES WILL BE BLOWN DOWN IN AND NEAR THE STORM TRACK. EXPECT SERIOUS WIND DAMAGE TO WEAK STRUCTURES. IF YOU ARE IN THIS GENERAL AREA THIS EVENING...QUICKLY MOVE TO A MORE SUBSTATIIALLY BUILT HOME OR BUILDING. IF STRONG WINDS PASS OVER YOUR AREA TAKE THE SAME PRECAUTIONS YOU WOULD FOR A TORNADO. THAT IS...GO TO A SMALL ROOM SUCH AS A CLOSET HALLWAY OR BATHROOM ON THE LOWEST FLOOR OR SEEK SAFETY IN COUNTY OPERATED SHELTERS. IF YOU HAVE SHUTTERS FOR YOUR HOME...THEY SHOULD BE UP BY NOW. WIDESPREAD POWER OUTAGES CAN BE EXPECTED LATER THIS EVENING. THIS HAS BECOME A VERY DANGEROUS SITUATION. ...STORM SURGE FLOOD AND STORM TIDE IMPACTS... MINOR COASTAL STORM SURGE AND BEACH EROSION IS EXPECTED FROM CHARLEY ...PRIMARILY IN NORTHERN BREVARD AND VOLUSIA COUNTIES TONIGHT. VERY ROUGH CONDITIONS WILL SET UP WITHIN THE INTRACOASTAL WATERWAY IN BREVARD AND VOLUSIA COUNTY. THIS COULD CAUSE FLOODING IN LOW AREAS ALONG THE WATERWAY AS WELL AS SHORELINE EROSION AND DAMAGE TO BOATS...DOCKS AND PIERS. ...FLOOD IMPACTS... A FLOOD WATCH IS IN EFFECT FOR ALL OF EAST CENTRAL FLORIDA THROUGH SATURDAY. WIDESPREAD RAINFALL TOTALS OF THREE TO FOUR INCHES ARE EXPECTED...WITH THE POSSIBILITY OF FOUR TO EIGHT INCHES OF RAIN IN SPOTS AS CHARLEY PASSES THROUGH THE FORECAST AREA TODAY AND INTO SATURDAY. PLACES ALREADY SATURATED FROM RECENT HEAVY RAINS WILL BE MOST VULNERABLE TO SERIOUS FLOODING. IMPORTANTLY...LOCATIONS CLOSEST TO THE CENTER TRACK OF CHARLEY STAND TO RECEIVE THE MOST RAIN. ...MARINE IMPACTS... TROPICAL STORM CONDITIONS WILL SPREAD UP THE PENINSULA THIS EVENING AND CONTINUE OVERNIGHT. HURRICANE CONDITIONS ARE EXPECTED TO DEVELOP NORTH OF COCOA BEACH LATE TONIGHT AS THE CENTER OF CHARLEY MAKES ITS CLOSEST APPROACH TO EAST CENTRAL FLORIDA. THERE WILL BE AN ADDITIONAL THREAT OF STRONG WIND GUSTS AND THE POSSIBILITY OF TORNADIC WATERSPOUTS IN THE RAIN BANDS THAT WILL FEED INTO CHARLEY AS THEY MOVE ACROSS THE COASTAL WATERS TOWARD SHORE. ...TORNADO IMPACTS... THE TRACK OF HURRICANE CHARLEY WILL PUT ALL OF EAST CENTRAL FLORIDA IN THE RIGHT FRONT QUADRANT OF ITS CIRCULATION WHICH IS THE MOST FAVORABLE AREA FOR TORNADO DEVELOPMENT. A TORNADO WATCH IS IN EFFECT FOR ALL OF EAST CENTRAL FLORIDA. AN OUTBREAK OF SIGNIFICANT TORNADOES IS POSSIBLE THROUGH THE EARLY MORNING HOURS SATURDAY. ...NEXT UPDATE... THE NEXT HURRICANE LOCAL STATEMENT WILL BE ISSUED AROUND 6 PM OR SOONER IF CONDITIONS WARRANT. FOR A GRAPHICAL VERSION OF THIS HURRICANE LOCAL STATEMENT...SEE THE MELBOURNE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WEB PAGE AT: WWW.SRH.NOAA.GOV/MLB $$ DECKER