Hurricane Ophelia strengthened as it headed toward Ireland, threatening everything from farms to a golf course owned by the family of President Trump.

Ophelia turned into a “rare” category 3 hurricane, the sixth major hurricane of the 2017 season, 220 miles south of the Azores, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said in an advisory. It is the most eastern category 3 Atlantic hurricane on record, according to the U.K.’s Met Office.

The system was moving northeast at 25 mph with top winds of 115 mph, according to the NHC. It was expected to start weakening Saturday night or Sunday.

“Ophelia is still expected to remain a powerful cyclone with hurricane force winds for the next couple of days as it approaches Ireland,” the NHC said.

After Hurricane Irma closed Trump’s Mar-A-Lago in Florida last month, Ophelia could make landfall close to the Trump family’s golf resort near the village of Doonbeg early this week.

Ireland’s Met Eireann issued a red wind warning, its highest level, for five counties for Monday, with an orange warning in place for the rest of the nation.

Advertisement

Ophelia could become the strongest post-tropical system to rake Ireland since Hurricane Debbie in 1961, which killed 18 people and stripped almost 25 percent of the trees in some areas, according to Weather Underground.

Sixty people died in a plane crash in the Azores caused by Debbie.

The red warning, indicating high average wind speeds, is in place for Galway, Mayo, Clare, Cork and Kerry, Met Eireann said.

Ophelia will move across the country quickly and may bring heavy rain if it makes landfall, Gerald Fleming, head of forecasting at the Irish weather service, said Friday on RTE radio.


Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.

Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.