The Latest: Orlando airport reopens after Dorian passes

By Associated Press 05 September 2019, 12:00AM

FREEPORT, Bahamas (AP) — The Latest on Hurricane Dorian (all times local):

10:25 a.m.

Florida's busiest airport is re-opening after being closed for more than a day because Hurricane Dorian was skirting the state's eastern coast.

Officials say Orlando International Airport was resuming commercial operations at noon Wednesday. Flights into and out of the airport were halted Tuesday morning in anticipation of the storm.

Meanwhile, Orlando's theme parks were back to regular operating hours, for the most part.

Walt Disney World and Universal Orlando Resort opened for a full day on Wednesday after having closed early Tuesday. SeaWorld Orlando was re-opening mid-morning Wednesday after being closed all day Tuesday.

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10:25 a.m.

South Carolina Department of Correction officials have decided not to evacuate a coastal prison that houses about 950 inmates, although Hurricane Dorian is projected to head toward the area by midweek.

The department tweeted Monday that staff and inmates at the Ridgeland Correctional Institution in the Jasper County evacuation zone will remain at the prison during the storm. Inmates with extra medical needs were evacuated.

The department says Ridgeland has enough supplies to last several weeks. The department says they believe Ridgeland is the safest place for staff and inmates. It says Ridgeland opened in 1995 and has never been evacuated.

The State newspaper reported an inmate previously died at Ridgeland in 2016 during Hurricane Matthew. Then-Gov. Nikki Haley said the death was "seemingly unrelated."

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9:05 a.m.

The U.S. Navy has ordered ships based on Virginia's coast to head out to sea to avoid Hurricane Dorian .

Navy spokeswoman Elizabeth Baker said by phone Wednesday that vessels docked at the world's largest Navy base in Norfolk and other nearby installations are getting under way.

Vice Admiral Andrew Lewis said in a statement Tuesday that the ships will remain at sea until the threat from the storm subsides. Navy aircraft will either be secured in hangars or fly to more inland airfields.

The Navy's order follows a similar one made by the U.S Air Force earlier Tuesday.

F-22 Raptor fighter jets and T-38 Talon training planes were ordered to leave Langley Air Force Base in Hampton, Virginia. They're going to the Rickenbacker Air National Guard Base outside Columbus, Ohio.

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9:05 a.m.

Officials in Florida are expecting some beach erosion but say there have been no reports of major damage as Hurricane Dorian passed near Daytona Beach.

The National Weather Service reported a peak wind gust of 79 mph (127 kph) in New Smyrna Beach early Wednesday.

The Daytona Beach News-Journal said there were reports of seawater surging up the beach ramps in several locations. The newspaper said the Granada Bridge in Ormond Beach had reopened in both directions by 7:30 a.m. Wednesday.

Volusia County Sheriff Mike Chitwood said that as of 4 a.m., not a single 911 call had been reported.

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8:45 a.m.

Bahamian Parliament member Iram Lewis, who is in Grand Bahama, said rescue crews are preparing to go into the island's eastern region for the first time since Hurricane Dorian hit.

He says he fears casualties in that area and said there are a lot of medical needs overall on the island. Lewis was driving and said he observed only one gas station open with a line of about half a mile forming.

He said the government was now pulling teams together to receive goods from abroad and was organizing distribution centers as teams began to launch search-and-rescue missions now that the weather has cleared.

At least seven deaths have been reported in the Bahamas from Dorian, with the full scope of the disaster still unknown.

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8:10 a.m.

Hurricane Dorian's center is moving parallel to Florida's northeastern coast as it churns north-northwestward in the Atlantic.

The storm's maximum sustained winds Wednesday morning are near 105 mph (165 kph), making it a Category 2 storm.

Dorian is centered about 95 miles (155 kilometers) east-northeast of Daytona Beach, Florida, and is moving about 8 mph (13 kph).

At least seven deaths have been reported in the Bahamas from Dorian, with the full scope of the disaster still unknown.

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8:10 a.m.

Sea turtle nests along many of Florida's beaches are in danger of being washed out to sea as Hurricane Dorian sideswipes the Atlantic Coast.

Conservation officials urge the public not to interfere by trying to rescue any stranded hatchlings or disturbing buried nests.

Volusia County's seat turtle habitat conservation plan manager Jennifer Winters tell the Orlando Sentinel "there's not a lot" that can be done. She says once eggs get pulled from the sand, "they're not going to make it."

She says on Friday 397 sea turtle nests were recorded on Volusia County beaches. Since Saturday, 40 nests were washed out and more are expected as Dorian passes by.

Canaveral National Seashore spokeswoman Laura Henning says before closing Saturday for the storm, 12,000 nests were counted.

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6:15 a.m.

While Hurricane Dorian moves closer to Florida, two other named storms are blowing in the Atlantic region.

Tropical Storm Fernand is in the Gulf of Mexico and closing in on the Northeast Mexican coast just south of the U.S. border, with top sustained winds near 50 mph (85 kmh) and higher gusts. The hurricane center says heavy rainfall of up to 18 inches (46 centimeters) could fall in places along Mexico's Gulf Coast and the Sierra Madre Oriental, and could cause life-threatening flash floods and mudslides as the storm moves ashore Wednesday.

Tropical Storm Gabrielle, meanwhile, is far out in the Atlantic Ocean and poses no threat to land. It is expected to remain a tropical storm on a track far from North America.

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5:00 a.m.

Tropical storm conditions continue along portions of the northeastern coast of Florida as Dorian continues to make its slow trek toward the U.S.

The National Hurricane Center says the deadly storm was centered at 5 a.m. EDT Wednesday about 90 miles (144 kilometers) east of Daytona Beach, Florida. It has top sustained winds of 105 mph (168 kph) as a Category 2 hurricane. The storm is moving north northwest at 8 mph (12 kph), tracking offshore and nearly parallel to Florida's Atlantic shoreline.

Some weakening is expected during the next couple of days but Dorian is expected to remain a powerful hurricane.

The Miami-based weather center says a turn toward the north is forecast by Wednesday evening, followed by a turn toward the north-northeast on Thursday morning. The core of Dorian will move dangerously close to the Florida east coast and the Georgia coast through Wednesday night. The center of Dorian is forecast to move near or over the coast of South Carolina and North Carolina Thursday through Friday morning.

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1:30 a.m.

Hurricane Dorian's eye is passing to the east of Cape Canaveral, Florida. The U.S. National Hurricane Center says the deadly storm is now about 90 miles (144 kilometers) east northeast of Cape Canaveral, Florida.

Maximum sustained winds are being clocked at 110 mph (175 kph). It's moving to the north northwest at 7 mph (11 kph).

The Miami-based weather center says a turn toward the north is forecast by Wednesday evening, followed by a turn toward the north-northeast on Thursday morning. The core of Dorian will move dangerously close to the Florida east coast and the Georgia coast through Wednesday night. The center of Dorian is forecast to move near or over the coast of South Carolina and North Carolina Thursday through Friday morning. Earlier this week Dorian pummeled parts of the Bahamas as a Category 5 hurricane, leaving widespread devastation and at least seven people dead.

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12 a.m.

Bahamians are rescuing victims of Hurricane Dorian with jet skis and a bulldozer as the U.S. Coast Guard, Britain's Royal Navy and a handful of aid groups try to get food and medicine to survivors.

Airports are flooded and roads impassable after the most powerful storm to hit the Bahamas in recorded history parked over Abaco and Grand Bahama islands and pounded them with winds up to 185 mph (295 kph) and torrential rain before finally moving into open waters on a course toward Florida.

People on the U.S. coast are making final preparations for a storm with winds at a still-dangerous 110 mph (175 kph).

At least seven deaths have been reported in the Bahamas, with the full scope of the disaster still unknown.

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For AP's complete coverage of the hurricane: https://apnews.com/Hurricanes .

By Associated Press 05 September 2019, 12:00AM

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