Heavy rains expected in Puerto Rico and Virgin Islands as Tropical Storm Erin nears
The storm was located several hundred miles east of the northern Leeward Islands and has maximum sustained winds of 70 mph (113 kph), according to the National Hurricane Center in Miami. It was moving northwest at 17 mph (28 kph.)
Tropical storm watches are in effect for parts of the Leeward Islands, and tropical storm conditions are also forecast for the U.S. and British Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico over the weekend.
'While there is still uncertainty in what impacts might occur in portions of the Bahamas, the east coast of the United States, and Bermuda next week, the risk of dangerous surf and rip currents across the western Atlantic basin next week continues to increase,' the advisory said.
Hurricane specialist and storm surge expert Michael Lowry said nearly all models have Erin turning 'safely east of the broader U.S. next week.'
Erin is the fifth named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season, which runs from June 1 to Nov. 30.
Forecasters are expecting another unusually busy season for the Atlantic, with predictions calling for six to 10 hurricanes, with up to half reaching major status.
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The Guardian
3 hours ago
- The Guardian
Tropical Storm Erin expected to become major Atlantic hurricane
Tropical Storm Erin is approaching Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands, bringing heavy rains that could cause flooding and landslides on its way to becoming a major Atlantic hurricane. The huge storm was swirling across the Caribbean on Friday morning and is ultimately expected to head towards Florida, picking up speed over warm ocean water, before ultimately veering away from the US mainland. The National Hurricane Center (NHC) in Miami reported on X that Erin, the fifth named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season, was several hundred miles east of the northern Leeward Islands, with maximum sustained winds of 70 mph. It was expected to strengthen into a hurricane on Friday afternoon as it approached the north-east Caribbean, prompting forecasters to warn of possible flooding and landslides, and strengthen into a major category 3 storm late this weekend. Private sector forecaster AccuWeather went further. 'Erin is forecast to explode into a powerful category 4 hurricane as it moves across very warm waters in the open Atlantic. Water temperatures at the surface and hundreds of feet deep are several degrees higher than the historical average,' said Alex DaSilva, AccuWeather's lead hurricane expert. Tropical storm watches were issued for Anguilla and Barbuda, St Martin and St Barts, Saba and St Eustatius and St Maarten with torrential rain forecast to start late Friday in Antigua and Barbuda, the US and British Virgin Islands, and the southern and eastern parts of the US territory of Puerto Rico, east of the Dominican Republic and Haiti. Up to 4in of rain are expected in the region, with isolated totals of up to 6in, according to the NHC. Forecasters have also warned of dangerous swells. 'There is still uncertainty about what impacts Erin may bring to portions of the Bahamas, the east coast of the United States, and Bermuda in the long range,' NHC said on Friday. Hurricane specialist and storm surge expert Michael Lowry said to the Associated Press that Erin is forecast to eventually take a sharp turn northeast that would put it on a path between the US and Bermuda. 'The forecasts for next week still keep the future hurricane safely east of the mainland US,' he said. Erin formed from a cluster of showers and thunderstorms that moved off the African coast last week, becoming a tropical rainstorm near the Cabo Verde Islands and dumping up to 8in of rain in five hours. Televisão África reported that at least six people died, with more missing, after flash flooding. AccuWeather predicted Erin would create dangerous surf and rip currents up the US east coast next week, with waves reaching up to 15ft in North Carolina.
Daily Mail
4 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Deadly storm Erin to reach hurricane status in just HOURS as spaghetti models reveal path up the US East Coast
Tropical Storm Erin is expected to reach hurricane status today, bringing the threat of severe flooding to the entire East Coast if current spaghetti models are wrong. Erin, which is currently gathering strength in the Atlantic, is projected to become a Category 4 storm by Monday at the latest as it approaches Bermuda. Meteorologists warned that the hurricane would bring dangerous surf and coastal flooding to millions in the US, from the Carolinas to New England. However, the forecast could get even worse if Erin defies the current spaghetti models, which have the storm spinning away from the East Coast as it moves north later next week. A spaghetti model shows the different possible paths a tropical storm or hurricane might take, based on predictions from multiple weather computer programs. Each line represents one model's guess about where the storm could go. If the lines are close together, it means most models agree on the path, and the prediction is more certain. In Erin's case, most spaghetti models have the strengthening storm veering away from the US, but at least two potential paths take the hurricane much closer to the Carolinas and Virginia. AccuWeather lead hurricane expert Alex DaSilva warned: 'Erin has not yet started to curve north. The longer Erin tracks west before turning north, the odds increase of impacts potentially reaching the East Coast.' According to the latest forecasts, Erin will officially become a hurricane Friday afternoon, as its winds exceed 75 mph for the first time since the storm developed. However, AccuWeather forecasters said it'll quickly ramp up into a Category 3 storm by Saturday, bringing sustained winds of more than 110 mph as it passes Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic this weekend. The AccuWeather team projected that Erin should reach its peak Monday afternoon, as its winds surpass 130 mph, entering Category 4 status for at least a day as it begins to turn towards Bermuda. If the hurricane doesn't turn at this point, it could put Erin on course to make landfall in the US, which hasn't happened since Hurricane Beryl struck Texas in July 2024. 'Be vigilant if you're going to an East Coast beach next week. Be aware of rip current warning signs and only swim in areas with lifeguards on duty,' DaSilva added in a statement. The East Coast should start feeling the effects of the storm by the beginning of next week. Meteorologists said the first states Erin will impact will likely be North Carolina and Virginia, where beachfront properties could be at risk. Rough surf, rip currents, coastal flooding, and beach erosion are all expected to be issues for residents and vacationers in the area as soon as Monday or Tuesday. Coastal flooding is expected to be a major risk for all states from the Carolinas to New England next week (Stock Image) As the storm moves over cooler ocean waters and encounters stronger wind shears, Erin is expected to drop to Category 2 strength as it travels along the New England coast next Thursday and Friday, with winds between 96 and 110 mph. Cooler water provides less energy for hurricanes, and wind shear can disrupt their structure, reducing their overall strength. However, states like Maine, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts are still projected to see heavy rain and wind later next week. 'North Carolina's Outer Banks, Long Island, New York, and Cape Cod, Massachusetts face a higher risk of direct and potentially severe tropical storm or hurricane conditions than much of the southern Atlantic, mid-Atlantic and northern New England coasts,' the AccuWeather team revealed. Offshore, the hurricane could cause massive waves in the Atlantic that range between 50 and 100 feet high. That kind of ocean activity could put cruise ships and cargo freighters in serious danger. For smaller ships, a 100-foot wave could be life-threatening. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has predicted an 'above average' season that will likely result in more named storms than there were in 2024, when 18 such storms were tracked. In May, NOAA predicted up to 19 named storms, 10 hurricanes, and five major hurricanes affecting the US this year. The National Hurricane Center noted that approximately 400 people died during 2024's hurricane season, the deadliest season since 2005.
BBC News
5 hours ago
- BBC News
Flash floods kill more than 160 in Pakistan
At least 164 people have died in the last 24 hours in heavy monsoon floods and landslides in Pakistan and Pakistan-administered of the deaths, 150, were recorded by disaster authorities in the mountainous Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in northern Pakistan. At least 30 homes were destroyed and a rescue helicopter has also crashed during operations, killing its five more people were killed in Pakistan-administered Kashmir, while five died in the northern Gilgit-Baltistan region, it forecasters said heavy rainfall was expected until August 21 and there is a heavy rain alert for the northwest of the country. Several regions have been declared disaster zones. The chief minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Ali Amin Gadapur, said that the M-17 helicopter crashed due to bad weather while flying to Bajaur, a region bordering Afghanistan .In Bajaur, a crowd amassed around an excavator trawling a mud-soaked hill, AFP photos showed. Funeral prayers began in a paddock nearby, with people grieving in front of several bodies covered by the Indian-administered part of Kashmir, rescuers pulled bodies from mud and rubble on Friday after a flood crashed through a Himalayan village, killing at least 60 people and washing away dozens rains between June and September deliver about three-quarters of South Asia's annual rainfall. Landslides and flooding are common and than 300 people have died in this year's July, Punjab, home to nearly half of Pakistan's 255 million people, recorded 73% more rainfall than the previous year and more deaths than in the entire previous say that climate change has made weather events more extreme and more frequent.
