Beta’s wrath aimed at Central America
The 2005 hurricane season continues to produce storms at a record pace. Hurricane Beta is the season’s 13th, breaking the old record of a 12 set back in 1969. Beta should make landfall this morning on Nicaragua’s northeast coast with winds approaching the 111 m.p.h. Category 3 threshold. However, Beta’s legacy may well lie in the aftermath of its torrential rainfall that could exceed two feet over the mountainous terrain of Nicaragua and Honduras, causing massive flash flooding, mudslides and potentially a large loss of life.
Meanwhile, Chicago is facing an unusually mild November start dominated by highs in the 60s, at a time of year when cold, blustery weather along with the season’s first snow flurries would not be considered unusual. Two periods of rain are possible, one tonight into Monday and again Thursday, but neither will make a significant dent in the area’s extreme drought.