Hurricane Elsa To Affect Tampa-St. Pete in Next Few Hours

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The National Hurricane Center says Elsa has regained hurricane status with sustained 75 mph winds.

Radar at 8:18pm. I've put the hurricane symbol at the center of the storm and outlined the area of highest winds. Currently, the storm is moving NNW.

The strongest winds are in the 70-75 mph range. The storm may fluctuate up again a bit when the center passes west of Tampa Bay. The NWS is forecasting peak gusts of 90 mph in Tampa Bay but, right now that seems a bit high to me. 

Storm surge of 3 to 5' is forecast for Tampa Bay.

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