Now looking like the Keys are going to get a direct hit (I have a good friend who lives in EYW that I've been unable to get a hold of, hopefully because he's driving up through the panhandle heading north / west in areas that have no cell service).
This one is tricky. It looks as though the Carolinas will get spared but parts of FL are going to get hammered. Once this thing enters the Gulf of Mexico (which it looks like it'll do), does it go to New Orleans next? Extrapolating the track puts it awfully close...
Might be a Cat 4 or even Cat 5 by then. This is a monster. It's a textbook storm with very little working against it (warm SSTs, low to no atmospheric shear, moist air along the projected path, etc.) If anything it likely will get stronger. Be safe all!
