St. Johns County Date: October 23, 2005
Department of Emergency Management Time: 5:30 PM
Press Release – For Immediate Release From: Ray Ashton
Emergency Management Director
Hurricane Wilma – Press Release 5Hurricane Wilma Local Statement –
Hurricane Local Statement
National Weather Service Jacksonville, Florida
11:36 AM EDT – Sunday, October 23, 2005
… A Tropical Storm Watch continues from Fernandina Beach Florida Southward to Flagler Beach and is expanded to include inland portions of Nassau…Duval…St. Johns and Flagler Counties… Flood Watch in effect through Monday evening for most of Northeast Florida…A Tropical Storm Watch means that Tropical Storm conditions are possible within the watch area … generally within 36-hours.
Hurricane Wilma Public Advisory –
From the National Hurricane Center … At 4:00 PM CDT the center of Hurricane Wilma was located near Latitude 23.5 North … Longitude 84.9 West or about 210 miles West-Southwest of Key West Florida … or about 295 miles Southwest of the Southwestern Coast of the Florida Peninsula. Wilma is moving toward the Northeast near 14 MPH. A continued Northeastward motion and a gradual increase in forward speed are expected tonight and Monday. On this tract … the center of Wilma is forecast to be near the Southwestern Coast of the Florida Peninsula early Monday morning. However … Wilma is a large system and Tropical Storm force winds will reach the Florida Keys and Florida Peninsula tonight … well in advance of the Center. Maximum sustained winds have increased and are now near 105 MPH … with higher gusts. Wilma is a Category Two Hurricane. Some strengthening is possible tonight and early Monday … and Wilma could be near Category Three strength as it nears the Southwestern Florida Coast. Hurricane force winds extend outward up to 85 miles from the center … and Tropical Storm force winds extend outward up to 230 miles.
St. Johns County Protective Actions
ê St. Johns County Emergency Operations Center (EOC) is monitoring Hurricane Wilma.
ê Activation of the EOC within the next 14 hours is not anticipated.
ê It is not anticipated at this time that there will be a need for local shelters to be open.
ê Monitoring of this storm through the local news media is strongly recommended.
ê All public schools will be open tomorrow, Monday.
For more information you may call SJC Emergency Management at (904) 824-5550,
or visit our website at www.sjcemergencymanagement.org