Category four and five storms often blow up like that in size, after
they go over land. The classic example was Michelle in 2001, an
intense, compact category four storm, moving retrograde, blasted right
through central Cuba late in the season, and then blew up to a very
large oblong category three eye, that literally engulfed the entire
chain of the Exuma Cays in the Bahamas, causing a massive amount of
damage.

You guys had plenty of warning. That was the most intense hurricane on
record. Anytime a hurricane that intense forms, it's going to take
quite a while for it to dissapate. You were lucky it was moving so
fast, otherwise it would have been a lot worse.

Remember your hard earned lesson, and use it to your advantage the next
time.

http://webpages.charter.net/tsiolkovsky/rocket.htm