Well, it's actually been a nice day so far. We've decided to stick it out here since Dennis seems to be tracking a little further West than expected... and the fact that it hasn't strengthened any since last night when landfall in Cuba weakened it significantly (although it is expected to strengthen a little before it reaches the U.S.).

We had a nasty rain storm about noon from the first feeder band to reach us. Looks like another band is on it's way in about an hour or so. These are the same type of feeder bands that caused the tornados last year with Ivan so everyone is a little on edge.

Other than that, it's been a sunny day with gradually increasing winds (5-10mph now). We're expecting weather to deteriorate gradually tonight and be really bad tomorrow morning.

Some of the lower areas and coastal areas of Bay County are under a mandatory evacuation. Traffic was really bad yesterday with all the tourists and some locals leaving town. Gas was hard to find and the lines were long, but everything has settled down today.

If you want to know what's going on in the Destin/Walton County areas, check out Keith's posts on Hurricane Dennis in Destin.

More when there's actually something to talk about...

Well, it's strengthening a little and still headed west of us toward Mobile Bay. Even though it appears the eye will pass far west of us, we may still see a 6-8 ft. storm surge and 8-10 ft. waves. Similar to Ivan when most of the damage was beach erosion. The extent of damage from wind and seas will be higher west of PCB.

Still just waiting. There's another feeder band coming from Tallahasse area that should be here in a few hours... and the bad weather from Tampa that caused a few tornados will be in our area in the morning. Winds will pick up significantly, but as long as Dennis stays on its current track, we should only see tropical storm force winds.

Fingers-crossed. I'll be up all night probably.

Conditions are worse this morning than they were last night. Strong sustained winds of 30-40mph. Looks like the HUrricane is taking a little northward turn which will put it a little closer to us. Looks like it may hit Pensacola / Navarre Beach area. Those folks are still recovering from Hurricane Ivan so this will be really bad for them. Dennis has also strengthened and is now a category 4 with 145mph winds. Fortunately, those high winds only extend 15-20 miles from the eyewall.

Schooners' Panama City Beach Live Cams are still up... check 'em out before they lose power. You can see really high surf and LOTS of wind.

"Buoys offshore are reporting waves in excess of 30 feet." from the Weather Channel. Wow!

The Weather Channel
NOAA Hurricane Center
Weather Underground

Thanks for the reports. Here are a couple of more sites for cams and streams:

http://www.regencytowers.com/Regency...asp?idPage=876
http://www.wmbb.com/servlet/Satellit...83737220&path=

I've been watching TWC off and on all night last night and this morning. Dennis looks pretty bad. The waves in Pensacola Beach are intense, glad I'm not there. I am a little concerned at PCB, they haven't said much about it today. It looks like it's going to hit Mobile. What are the local news channels in PCB saying this morning?

Winds are picking up and more steady with higher gusts. LOTS and LOTS of rain. They expect landfall within 4-5 hours so the worst is still on its way... but things haven't been too bad in PCB so far.

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Actually, WMBB, our ABC affiliate, has continuous coverage of the hurricane. You can watch it streaming live on Windows Media Player.

http://www.wmbb.com

They also have a hurricane blog going and a few photos.

Really nothing major going on yet. Seems like the effect it will have on PCB will be similar to Ivan... with minimal to no damage to structures and moderate beach erosion. The good news is beach renourishment is currently in progress, so it won't take too long to replace any sand lost from the storm surge and waves.

Curfew will be in effect for all of Bay County from 7pm tonight until 6am tomorrow.

Looks like Pensacola will take another direct hit. Sure hope they fare better this time than they did with Ivan.

pics from local tv stations.... one shows huge waves at the city pier in pcb... the other is a 3D view of the eyewall.

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The water is coming through the first floor of the new condos at Pinnacle Port and into the parking area. Luckily no injuries acording to the Bay County Sheriff's Office.

Curfews in place for all area counties until tomorrow a.m.... Gulf County south of White City, Jackson County, Franklin County, Walton County, Okaloosa and I'm sure counties further to the West, too.

Looks like The Treasure Ship had some minor cosmetic damage from a suspected waterspout. No other damage in the area, though...

Based on what ya'll are seeing there so far, you think I'm safe to assume my vacation down there beginning on the 16th is on go? I feel so bad for everyone having to go through this, but we have to make a decision today on whether to plan to go or to cancel. Based on what the weather guys here are saying, it sounds like PCB should be okay but I want to hear that from someone that is actually there. Thanks in advance!

Check out this pic from Spinnaker Beach Club's live cam... the storm surge is WAY up. Looks like it's knockin on Spinnaker's back door... yikes!

Check for more recent shots here.

Schooners cams have probably lost power.

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