Hurricane Irene Batters Bahamas on Way toward U.S. East Coast

BOSTON, Aug. 25, 2011 – According to catastrophe modeling firm AIR Worldwide, Hurricane Irene is passing through the central Bahamas islands this morning after a night of battering the southern islands with heavy rains and strong winds. At the time of the National Hurricane Center’s 8:00 am EDT Advisory, Category 3 Hurricane Irene was about 65 miles east-northeast of Nassau, the capital and largest city of the Bahamas. Irene’s maximum sustained winds are 115 miles per hour with higher gusts. Hurricane-force winds extend outward up to 70 miles from the…

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In the Northeast residents without flood insurance may be in for a rude awakening

A major hurricane has not made landfall on U.S. soil since 2008, but Hurricane Irene has broken that period of peace. As the first real hurricane of a supposedly active season, Irene seems to be making up for lost time. The storm has already reached Category 3 and is expected to reach the Carolina’s by Thursday. The hurricane will continue moving north, making its way through Long Island, New York and other states. The coming storm has raised concerns regarding insurance coverage as many come to the dire realization that…

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Irene Strengthens to Category 3 Hurricane as it Advances Into the Bahamas

BOSTON, Aug. 24, 2011 — As of the National Hurricane Center’s 8:00 am EDT advisory, Category 3 Hurricane Irene is battering the southern Bahamas with sustained winds of 115 mph. According to catastrophe modeling firm AIR Worldwide, Irene is currently 55 miles southeast of Acklins Island and 335 miles southeast of the capital Nassau. The storm is moving to the west-northwest at 9 mph. The center of the storm is headed directly for the Crooked and Acklins Islands, both sparsely populated (estimated population about 880 combined) and characterized by agriculture…

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Irene Becomes First Hurricane of the 2011 Atlantic Hurricane Season

According to catastrophe modeling firm AIR Worldwide, Irene became the Atlantic basin’s first hurricane of the 2011 season when its winds strengthened to 75 miles per hour at about 5:00 AM Monday morning as it was exiting Puerto Rico’s northern coast. Currently a Category 1 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale with sustained winds of 80 mph, Irene is expected to strengthen further over the next few days, potentially reaching Category 3 status by Saturday, depending on how long it remains over the ocean. “Hurricane Irene is the ninth…

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Typhoon Muifa Misses China’s East Coast, Lands in North Korea as Tropical Storm

BOSTON, Aug. 8, 2011 – According to catastrophe modeling firm AIR Worldwide, Muifa, once a super typhoon with winds exceeding 250 km/h (1-min sustained), made landfall near the border between China and North Korea around 12:00 UTC Monday at tropical storm strength. Last week, the storm had been forecast to make landfall over the weekend near Shanghai. However, Typhoon Muifa turned to the north earlier than expected and bypassed China’s eastern coastal provinces. Muifa weakened to a tropical storm as it entered the East China Sea and passed to the…

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