Oscar made landfall on the eastern side of Great Inagua Island in the southwestern Bahamas. Oscar is on the edge of the supportive upper-level ridge that allowed Oscar to rapidly intensify from a tropical wave to a hurricane in one day, yesterday. Oscar is moving towards northeastern Cuba and will make a second landfall this afternoon. Oscar will be capable of intensifying through this morning and early afternoon while atmospheric conditions remain favorable. However, by this evening a trough over the eastern Bahamas and western Atlantic will create strong southwesterly shear and cause Oscar to turn to the west by tomorrow morning and then turn to the north-northeast by tomorrow evening. The strong shear and dry air combined with the impacts of the mountains in Cuba will cause Oscar to weaken. Oscar will be absorbed by the upper-level trough next week as the strom turns into an extratropical storm by the middle of next week.
