NHC report: Michael reached Cat 5

At noon Central Time on Oct. 10, 2018, Hurricane Michael was already among the stronger Category 4 Atlantic hurricanes in history. Yet, it was to intensify until it came ashore around 12:30 CT between Panama City and Mexico Beach, Fla. A National Hurricane Center report released April 19 now indicates that the storm reached Category 5 status on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale prior to landfall. The NHC report says Michael reached maximum sustained winds at an estimated 140 knots (160 mph). It is five knots higher than the strength estimated at landfall on Oct. 10, but sufficient to bump it to “Cat 5” intensity. The corrective upgrade now puts Michael in the record books as the fourth-strongest U.S. storm ever recorded. The Top 3 include the 1935 Labor Day Hurricane in the Middle Keys (160 knots), 1969’s Hurricane Camille on coastal Mississippi (150 knots), and 1992’s Hurricane Andrew in South Florida (145 knots). Correcting hurricane records is a routine function of the NHC. After every hurricane season ends, NHC scientists and forecasters gather all available data for each storm from satellite, reconnaissance aircraft, radar, weather stations, and including information unavailable in real time. (National Hurricane Center report 04/19/19)