Irene Weakens to Tropical Storm as it Makes Landfall on New York’s Coney Island

BOSTON, Aug. 28, 2011 – According to catastrophe modeling firm AIR Worldwide, Irene deviated slightly from the NHC forecast track yesterday, taking a slight westward shift before resuming its north-northeast direction. This brought the center of the storm into New Jersey, near Little Egg Inlet, for its second landfall at 5:30 am this morning. Sustained winds, as reported by the NHC, were 75 mph. “It is worth noting, however, that as yet there have been no onshore wind observations of greater than tropical storm force since Irene made landfall near…

Read More

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…

Read More