Hurricane Maria made landfall on Puerto Rico in the early hours of Wednesday near the southeast corner of the island, and at 10 AM AST the eye of the storm is near the center of the island as it continues a course to the northwest. Hurricane force winds now engulf San Juan, along with the eastern two thirds of Puerto Rico. All areas should expect to feel strong winds and driving rain before Maria completes its course over Puerto Rico.
Overnight, the eyewall of Maria crashed over St. Croix while carrying winds of 175 mph. The damage to the largest and most populous island in the US Virgin Islands has not yet been assessed, though individual messages report considerable damage. Storm surge at St. Croix was expected to be between 6 and 9 feet—a punishing amount for any island.
Maria began an eyewall reformation this morning, dropping the storm just below the edge of Category 5 status, but it still reached Puerto Rico with winds at 155 mph. It is, by any measure, the most powerful storm to strike Puerto Rico in almost a century and now remains a Category 4.
Buildings trembled as the storm battered San Juan and sent torn off pieces of metal barricades clattering along streets.
Broken windows, mangled awnings and gutters dangled haphazardly from buildings or were ripped off entirely. Toilets bubbled noisily and belched foul air as the hurricane rumbled through the city’s water and sewage lines.
Puerto Rico’s government worked diligently to provide shelters, and citizens appeared to follow both strict rationing rules and evacuation orders in advance of the storm. But the widespread wind, rain, and flooding make it difficult to say that any location is safe.
We can only be glad that Maria weakened somewhat from the strength it held early on Tuesday evening. At the time, Maria’s core pressure was down to 908mb, making it the tenth most intense storm ever recorded.