Does Puerto Rico ordinarily get all the hurricanes? For some reason, I had the idea that they were normally further east, in the gulf of mexico. I've never really followed any of the paths before to really know, that's just the idea I had, yet they all seem to be over the caribbean islands and east coast now.
From what I had read today, Puerto Rico has had rare hits by Cat 4 or Cat 5 hurricanes, the most notable recent historical one being Hugo in 1989. Maria is shaping up to be at minimum a Cat 4 but possibly a Cat 5 when it hits the island. According to one article, the last Cat 5 to hit was in 1928.
Another articles states, "The Hurricane Center is projecting that the storm will be close to Category 5 intensity when it hits Puerto Rico on Wednesday. If it does rank as a Category 5 storm, with sustained winds of greater than 155 miles per hour, it would be only the second such storm to hit that island since 1851. "
I believe on either Hurricane Central or the National Hurricane Center, it stated that this season is probably going to be one of the most intensive and active hurricane seasons on record.
In any event, it looks like Maria is going to pass right over the island with extreme rainfall up to and perhaps in excess of 25 inches and with winds at or in excess of 155 mph. It's a good thing that the shelters are still in place from the hit from Irma. It is also fortunate that US based assets such as FEMA and search and rescue units are already on the ground and will stay through the storm.
"Hurricane warnings are up for Puerto Rico, Vieques, and Culebra, as well as the British and U.S. Virgin Islands. The threat to Puerto Rico is particularly grave, considering that the storm may be at or close to Category 5 intensity when it hits the island."
The problem is that since already having damage and the infrastructure being compromised, more significant damage is probable, even catastrophic.
Puerto Rico's governor had issued a statement earlier yesterday that all work reconstruction on roads, buildings and power had been stopped in order to prepare for Maria. He also said he needed to convince the people living there that this storm was going to be much worse than Irma.
Edited to add: Any factual mistakes are mine due to old age, poor memory, and reading too many articles.
