NOAA/NHS The National Hurricane Center's Hurricane Irma track, as of 11:00 a.m. AST.
Hurricane Irma is taking aim at Florida and many states along the East Coast. The storm, which is currently at a Category 5 level, is expected to make landfall in southern Florida sometime around Saturday morning and move northwest toward Georgia and the Carolinas.
But that path projection isn’t concrete, and the storm’s path could turn. While Virginia sits north of North Carolina, there’s no guarantee it won’t pass through the state. The National Weather Service said the outer rim of the storm could potentially hit southeastern Virginia by Monday or Tuesday, meaning Virginia Beach could be at risk.
“I would think some rain late Monday afternoon into Tuesday,” Mike Rusnak, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service in Wakefield, Va., told WYDaily.com.
Those in cities in southeast Virginia, such as Virginia Beach, are being urged to get a plan in place in case Irma turns toward the city.
“Dust off your hurricane plans and be prepared, just in case,” Dutter said to The Daily Press.
If there’s one things that’s for sure, it’s that cities in Virginia will feel at least some effects of the storm.
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Check below for the current Virginia Beach weather forecast, according to The Weather Channel, through the weekend and into next week, when the storm is projected to hit near the area.
Friday: Sunny and high of 77 degrees with 6 mph N winds with a 10 percent chance of rain.
Saturday: Sunny and high of 74 degrees with 12 mph NNE winds with a 0 percent chance of rain.
Sunday: Partly cloudy and high of 74 degrees with 17 mph NE winds with 10 percent chance of rain.
Monday: Cloudy/windy and a high of 78 degrees with 22 mph ENE winds with 20 percent chance of rain.
Tuesday: Rain/wind and a high of 84 degrees with 20 mph ESE winds with 80 percent chance of rain.
Virginia officials are recommending people have “at least a three-days supply of nonperishable food and water” in addition to at least one gallon of water per person per day.
If the storm does hit Virginia Beach area, the city has a website devoted to the emergency plan. Officials say the first step should be knowing your evacuation zone. The four evacuation zones in Virginia give people greater clarity of what to do in the case of an emergency. To find out your zone, click here. For more information on hurricane evacuation routes in Virginia, click here for a complete guide.
