Us News

Kennedy Space Center prepares for Dorian NASA civil servants and contractors at the  Kennedy Space Center  in Florida are bracing for high winds and rain from Dorian. Ahead of the storm, they are securing rocket stages, spacecraft assembly areas and even hauling a 6.7-million-pound mobile launch tower, designed for the huge rocket being built for the  Artemis moon program , back to the cavernous Vehicle Assembly Building for safekeeping. The 355-foot-tall gantry structure, carried atop a squat Apollo-era crawler-transporter, is scheduled to begin the 4.2-mile trip from launch complex 39B back to the protection of the VAB at dawn Friday -- a journey that's expected to take more than eight hours to complete. The VAB was designed to withstand winds of 125 miles per hour without major damage. The highest wind ever recorded at NASA's seaside launch pads during an earlier hurricane was around 115 mph.

University of Miami to suspend classes until Wednesday The  University of Miami said  it has canceled classes at the Coral Gables, marine and medical campuses beginning at noon on Friday, August 30 through Tuesday, September 3. The university also said it is putting storm shutters in place and positioning sandbags near doorways at those three campuses. Their emergency information hotline has been setup: 1-800-227-0354

Expanded WiFi hotspots across Florida Florida Governor Ron DeSantis issued a release Friday that Comcast will be opening a network of 200,000 Xfinity WiFi hotspots throughout the state to anyone, even non-customers, free of charge, to help residents and emergency personnel stay connected. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement will be establishing a mobile communications team to ensure emergency communications continue during the storm. DeSantis also said Florida Highway Patrol will be escorting fuel trucks to ensure fuel reaches "critical areas." DeSantis said 99.6% of nursing homes have a generator or have arrangements in place.  Three days after Hurricane Irma hit in 2017 , four residents died inside a nursing home in south Florida. Another four residents died shortly after the nursing home was evacuated. And four more died in the days and weeks that followed. The Broward County Medical Examiner ruled the deaths as homicides. Additionally, DeSantis said 95.

Hurricane warning issued for the Bahamas A hurricane warning has been issued for the northwestern Bahamas, meaning hurricane conditions are expected within the next 36 hours. As of 5 p.m. ET, the storm is located about 420 miles east of the northwestern Bahamas and about 595 miles east of West Palm Beach, Florida. Maximum sustained winds are still 115 mph, meaning it is still a Category 3 storm.

"Mar-a-Lago can handle itself": Trump's resort could be in direct path of storm President Trump's West Palm Beach resort Mar-a-Lago could be in the direct path of Dorian, according to the National Hurricane Center's projections. The storm is expected to make landfall in Florida as a dangerous Category 4 storm, meaning there will be maximum sustained winds of at least 130 mph. Mar-a-Lago is currently closed for the summer season. The historic house, built in 1927, is located on 17.5 acres between the Atlantic Ocean and the Intracoastal Waterway, according to the  Palm Beach Post . Mar-a-Lago has been in the path of major storms before, including 2017's Hurricane Irma, which caused some roof damage and roof leaks. Mr. Trump told reporters Friday afternoon that it "looks like Mar-a-Lago is dead center" but "Mar-a-Lago can handle itself." He said he was worried about the whole state of Florida. Mr. Trump canceled a scheduled weeke

Hurricane Dorian threatens  roughly $150 billion  in Florida real estate, including 668,000 homes, according to CoreLogic, which predicts disaster losses, and only about a third of those Floridians have flood insurance policies. The Miami area could sustain as much as $85 billion in losses if it takes a hit from Dorian. As with all hurricanes, many variables come into play in assessing the risks. One is the "Bermuda High," a subtropical area of high atmospheric pressure that could push Dorian toward Miami, instead of its current target of Port St. Lucie. If Dorian grows stronger, it could even push on toward Cape Canaveral, Jacksonville and into Georgia or even North and South Carolina, according to CoreLogic meteorologist David Betten. Read more about the projections here. -- Ed Leefeldt ​"It gets worse every year": Residents facing long lines for supplies There's plenty of time to prepare for Hurricane Dorian, but not enough supplies. James Schucha

Hurricane Dorian fast facts: New forecasts say Dorian may spare Florida from a direct hit and make landfall over South Carolina on Wednesday or Thursday. State of emergencies are in effect for the entire states of Florida, North Carolina and South Carolina, along with 12 counties in Georgia. Mandatory evacuations are underway as the storm bears down on the Bahamas. Hurricane Dorian, which strengthened to a Category 4 storm, is packing maximum sustained winds of 150 mph with higher gusts. More than 20 million Americans could feel the storm's impact. Preparations are under way to prepare for the massive storm. Hurricane conditions are expected in the Bahamas by Sunday. Storm surges there could raise water levels 15-feet above normal. As of 5 p.m. EDT on Saturday, Dorian's center was some 170 miles east of Great Abaco in the Bahamas and about 355 miles east of West Palm Beach, Florida, the National Hurricane Center said. The storm is moving west at about 8 mph. F

President Trump on Saturday met with FEMA officials at Camp David to discuss the response to  Hurricane Dorian . Mr. Trump  canceled a weekend visit to Poland  to plan for the potentially catastrophic storm that could affect more than 20 million Americans.  Mr. Trump briefly left Camp David to visit Trump National Golf Club in Sterling, Virginia, on Saturday morning, according to pool reports. He returned to the presidential retreat Saturday afternoon.  White House press secretary Stephanie Grisham said the president has been briefed hourly on the storm and that he "participated in several phone calls." When asked about a video posted by The Hill claiming to show Mr. Trump golfing, Grisham said, "I have no idea what that video is." Dorian  may spare Florida from a direct hit and make landfall over South Carolina on Wednesday or Thursday. State of emergencies are in effect for the entire states of Florida, South Carolina and North Carolina, and 12