9-mile (15-km) wide eyewall, a very unusual occurrence in a small and weak tropical storm. Bonnie quickly strengthened while turning to the north, a directional shift caused by a break in the mid-level ridge. The storm briefly weakened late on August 10; it re-strengthened again the following day to attain a peak intensity of . Soon after, strong southwesterly wind shear disrupted the storm, causing Bonnie to weaken again. On August 12, Bonnie made landfall just south of Apalachicola as a tropical storm. It quickly weakened to a tropical depression, and accelerated northeastward through the southeastern United States. After paralleling the Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina coastlines, Bonnie lost its tropical characteristics on August 14 to the east of New Jersey. Its remnant low continued northeastward, making landfall in Massachusetts and Maine and continuing into Atlantic Canada. Preparations About 16 hours before the storm moved through the Lesser Antilles, the government of Saint Lucia declared a tropical storm warning. Guadeloupe, Martinique, Dominica, St. Maarten, Saba, St. Eustatius, Puerto Rico and the U.S Virgin Islands issued tropical storm watches. Combined with the threat of Hurricane Charley, Bonnie forced the evacuation of 154 oil platforms and 32 oil rigs. The cease in production was equivalent to over 1.2 million barrels of loss in crude oil, or 0.2% of the annual oil production in the Gulf of Mexico. Natural gas reserves were also limited. The lack of gas production due to the storms was equivalent to 7.4% of the total daily production in the Gulf of Mexico. Early forecasts suggested that Bonnie would attain winds or Category 1 status. In response to the threat, 15 shelters in 7 northwestern Florida counties were put on standby. In the hours prior to landfall,2 shelters were opened, 4 were put on standby, and health and cleanup teams were deployed to the area. Parts of Gadsden, Wakulla, and Levy Counties issued voluntary evacuations, and numerous schools were closed. In anticipation of the storm, Florida Governor Jeb Bush issued a state of emergency. Impact Caribbean Sea As a tropical depression, the storm moved rapidly through the Lesser Antilles; consequently, most islands only experienced minor effects. For example, Saint Lucia received light and sporadic rain showers, accompanied by sustained winds of and gusts to . In Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, however, the depression dropped up to of rain in 24 hours. The rainfall blocked storm drains, including