
Hurricane Hunters early this morning recorded a pressure of 884 mb, now the lowest pressure ever recorded in the Atlantic Basin. This represents more than a 86 mb drop in just 12 hours! This appears to be one of the fastest pressure drops on record. Winds are now up to 175 mph making this a Category 5 hurricane. Hurricane watches have been extended up to parts of Cuba and the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico. Hurricane Wilma is moving west-northwestward at 8 mph and this general motion is expected to continue for the next 24 hours. Heavy rain is likely in Jamaica, the Cayman Islands, northern Honduras and southern Cuba. Wilma may try to slip through the Yucatan Channel into the extreme southern Gulf of Mexico and turn to the east or northeast. Residents of the southern Florida, including the Keys, should begin thinking about the possibility of a hurricane strike sometime this coming weekend.