At 2 PM AST...1800z...the center of Hurricane Emily was located near latitude 12.9 north... longitude 65.0 west or about 490 miles... 795 km... southeast of Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic. Emily is moving toward the west-northwest near 18 mph ...30 km/hr... and this motion is expected to continue for the next 24 hours. Reports from an Air Force Reserve unit reconnaissance aircraft
indicate that maximum sustained winds have increased and are now near 110 mph...175 km/hr...with higher gusts. Emily is a strong category two hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson scale. Additional strengthening is expected...and Emily could become a category three hurricane later today. Hurricane force winds extend outward up to 35 miles... 55 km...
from the center...and tropical storm force winds extend outward up to 105 miles...165 km. Estimated minimum central pressure is 972 mb...28.70 inches.