DISCUSSION AND OUTLOOK
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At 800 AM AST (1200 UTC), the center of Hurricane Jerry was located near latitude 18.5 North, longitude 59.6 West. Jerry is moving toward the west-northwest near 16 mph (26 km/h). A west-northwest to northwest motion at a decreasing forward speed is expected over the next few days. On the forecast track, the center of Jerry will move north of the northern Leeward Islands later today, pass well north of Puerto Rico on Saturday, and be well east-northeast of the southeastern Bahamas on Sunday.
Maximum sustained winds have decreased to near 100 mph (155 km/h) with higher gusts. A gradual weakening trend is forecast to continue today, but Jerry is expected to remain a hurricane during the next few days.
Hurricane-force winds extend outward up to 25 miles (35 km) from the center and tropical-storm-force winds extend outward up to 80 miles (130 km).
An Air Force Reserve Hurricane Hunter aircraft has recently
reported a minimum central pressure of 989 mb (29.20 inches).