Wilma Now a Cat 5 With 175 Mph Winds

Posted on October 19, 2005

Hurricane Wilma has been upgraded by the NHC to an incredibly powerful Category 5 hurricane with sustained winds of 175mph. The minimum pressure has dropped to 892 mb making Wilma the strongest storm of 2005 and tying the record for the 2nd most intense hurricane every recorded in the Atlantic. The all-time lowest was Gilbert with a minimum pressure of 888 mb. The National Hurricane Center relaesed a special update after receiving new data from a hurricane hunter aircraft.

DATA FROM A RECONNAISSANCE AIRCRAFT INDICATE THAT HURRICANE WILMA HAS BECOME AN EXTREMELY DANGEROUS CATEGORY FIVE HURRICANE ON THE SAFFIR-SIMPSON HURRICANE SCALE. THE RECONNAISSANCE PLANE MEASURED 175 MPH WINDS AND ESTIMATED A MINIMUM PRESSURE OF 892 MB. THIS IS THE LOWEST PRESSURE OBSERVED IN 2005 AND IS EQUIVALENT TO THE MINIMUM PRESSURE OF THE 1935 LABOR DAY HURRICANE IN THE FLORIDA KEYS.

HURRICANE WILMA