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Hurricane Dorian has made landfall on Abaco Islands in the Bahamas as a catastrophic Category 5 storm with 180 mph winds.
Hundreds of people hunkered down in schools, churches and other shelters as officials recognized there were not many structures on higher ground on the largely flat archipelago just southeast of Florida. Power and water outages were reported, with crews working in some communities as authorities warned that all government workers will remain indoors once winds reach 40 mph.
Millions from Florida to the Carolinas kept a wary eye on Dorian amid indications it would veer sharply northeastward after passing the Bahamas and track up the U.S. Southeast seaboard. But authorities warned that even if its core did not make U.S. landfall and stayed offshore, the potent storm would likely hammer U.S. coastal areas with powerful winds and heavy surf.
The National Hurricane Center in Miami said Dorian’s maximum sustained winds have increased to 180 mph, up from 175 mph. It is moving west at 7 mph. “Catastrophic conditions” are occurring in The Abaco Islands and expected across Grand Bahama later in the day, the center said.
With its 180 mph winds, Hurricane Dorian is now tied for the 4th strongest winds in the Atlantic since 1950, when record keeping began improving.
