Weather Authority: Florence to become a monster, strike on the East Coast likely

PHILADELPHIA (WTXF) - As of the 11 a.m. advisory from the National Hurricane Center, Florence has now grown to a Category 4 hurricane not long after growing to a Category 3 storm.

Florence not only sits in an environment that favors further development but is located above water temperatures near 90 degrees. This provides a tremendous amount of energy that creates the fuel to breed incredibly strong hurricanes. There is a very real possibility that Florence becomes a rare and dangerous Category 5 storm over the next 36 hours!

THE TRACK & IMPACTS IN THE PHILADELPHIA/NJ/DE AREA

The overall track remains consistent with a potential landfall from Wilmington, North Carolina to Nags Head, North Carolina. The cone of uncertainty this far out in the forecast period stretches over 400 miles since landfall is not expected until Thursday night. Any wobble and deviation in latitudinal position of Florence over the next 72 hours could play a pivotal role in where the exact location of landfall occurs.

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The New Jersey and Delaware coastlines will feel the effects from Florence by Tuesday afternoon regardless as swells increase and dangerous rip currents begin. Should the storm track more north and closer to the Virginia North Carolina border instead of the South and North Carolina border we could see the far outer rain bands reach southern New Jersey. These fine details are just too far out in the future to be fully understood or forecasted for this early on.

Hurricane Florence will be a devastating storm after landfall. The early projections show a 20-30"+ rainfall forecast, winds over 110 mph, and a major storm surge! This has every chance of being a historic landfalling hurricane for the North Carolina coastline should the track remain unchanged.

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