Irma track shifts west into Georgia

The latest projected track of Hurricane Irma has the powerful storm shifting to the west, with the center of the storm moving from Florida into Georgia, not South Carolina.

While still too soon to predict with certainty, the latest track would spare South Carolina some of the highest winds and rain from the storm.

But keep in mind that Irma, a Category 5 storm with maximum sustained winds at 175 miles per hour as of Thursday morning, is approximately 400 miles wide, according to The Washington Post.

Damaging winds up to hurricane force are still possible in the area on Monday and Monday night, the Columbia office of the National Weather Service said.

The Midlands could start feeling tropical storm force winds as early as Sunday night but on its current track, Irma’s winds aren’t likely to arrive in the area until Monday.

Parts of Florida are now under a hurricane watch and storm surge watch as Hurricane Irma, with sustained winds of 175 miles per hour, continues its march through the Caribbean on a north-northwest track at 16 miles per hour. Hurricane Irma is expected to remain a category 5 or 4 hurricane for the next two days.

According to the 5pm National Hurricane Center update, the distinct eye of Hurricane Irma was expected to move between the island of Hispaniola and the Turks and Caicos Islands Thursday night and between the north coast of Cuba and the Bahamas in the next two days.

This story was originally published September 7, 2017 at 5:18 PM with the headline "Irma track shifts west into Georgia."