John Ghiorse: Get Prepared for Hurricane Henri Now

John Ghiorse: Get Prepared for Hurricane Henri Now

All preparations for dangerous Hurricane Henri should be completed or completed as soon as possible. 

I know Henri is "only" a Category 1 storm but its projected landfall track over the eastern tip of Long Island and Eastern Connecticut puts Narragansett Bay, Buzzards Bay, and all of Rhode Island on the most dangerous side of the storm for wind damage and storm surge.

As of 5 pm Saturday, the center of Henri was located only 350 miles south of  Providence and is moving to the north at 18 mph. At that pace, the center or "eye" should make landfall on the eastern end of Long Island sometime tomorrow afternoon.

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But, serious effects from the storm will arrive much sooner. Heavy rain bands should arrive later tonight and continue tomorrow. Winds will increase out of the east and southeast tomorrow morning and then veer into the south as landfall occurs. Gust speeds are expected up to 74 mph (hurricane strength) with possibly higher.   

Once landfall occurs, Henri will slow down and slowly weaken but gusty winds and periods of heavy rain are quite possible through Monday, as what's left of Henri drifts through Central New England and finally exits the scene through the Gulf of Maine.    

This is still a very tricky situation and forecast so everyone should stay closely informed throughout the night and tomorrow. Being an "old hand" at this (in more ways than one!), I know that the situation can change quickly both for the better and the worse. I've learned over the years that hurricane forecasts can never be "set in stone".