Hurricane Erin Weakens While Drenching Puerto Rico, Islands
The storm, the first hurricane of the 2025 season, is expected to pass between North Carolina's Outer Banks and Bermuda later this week.
About 170 miles (275 kilometers) north-northwest of San Juan, Puerto Rico, Erin's top winds are blowing at 125 mph, making it a Category 3 hurricane on the five-step Saffir-Simpson scale, the US National Hurricane Center said in an update at 8 a.m. EDT.
Erin's winds increased rapidly on Saturday to reach 160 mph, making it a scale-topping Category 5 storm and one of the earliest examples of such a powerful system to emerge in the Atlantic. In July 2024, Hurricane Beryl became earliest storm to reach top intensity during the six-month Atlantic season.
In addition to its wind speeds, which are forecast to increase again, reaching 145 mph in the next day, Erin will swell in size.
'The expanding wind field will result in rough ocean conditions over much of the western Atlantic,' Senior Hurricane Specialist John Cangialosi wrote in the center's forecast. 'Given its track adjustments and increasing size, the government of the Bahamas has issued a tropical storm warning for the Turks and Caicos Islands, and a tropical storm watch for southeast Bahamas.'
While Erin barely grazed Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands, it still knocked out power to many residents. About 10% of Puerto Rico was without electricity overnight, Luma Energy reported, and crews on the US Virgin Islands were working to restore energy on Sunday.
If Erin holds to its forecast track, it will avoid a direct strike on any of the islands in the area or the US East Coast. It's expected to trace a shallow, c-shape arc through the western Atlantic, passing between North Carolina and Bermuda overnight Wednesday into Thursday.
In addition to Erin, another tropical wave that bears watching is moving off Africa into the Atlantic, said Dan Pydynowski, a meteorologist with commercial-forecaster AccuWeather Inc.
The patch of thunderstorms and showers is currently near Cabo Verde off Africa's coast and moving west across the Atlantic, with a 20% chance of becoming a storm in the next week.
That part of the ocean, between the Caribbean and Africa, is known as the main development region to forecasters and it's where some of history's most deadly and damaging storms have formed. It's also a part of the ocean that becomes particularly active between mid-August and late September.
'It's that time of year, the later part of August,' Pydynowski said. 'We will have to watch that. We are quickly approaching the peak of hurricane season.'
--With assistance from Alex Newman.
More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Time of India
34 minutes ago
- Time of India
Hurricane Erin weakens to Category 3 as forecasters wait for northward turn
Hurricane Erin weakened to a Category 3 hurricane Sunday as its outer bands continued to lash the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico with heavy rains and tropical-storm force winds. While Erin's maximum winds diminished, the storm's overall size grew and forecasters issued tropical storm warnings for the Turks and Caicos Islands and a watch for the southeast Bahamas. Show more Show less
Mint
5 hours ago
- Mint
Hurricane Erin Weakens While Drenching Puerto Rico, Islands
(Bloomberg) -- Hurricane Erin's winds dropped on Sunday as it wobbled westward, bringing heavy rain across the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico before turning north and probably restrengthening in the coming days. The storm, the first hurricane of the 2025 season, is expected to pass between North Carolina's Outer Banks and Bermuda later this week. About 170 miles (275 kilometers) north-northwest of San Juan, Puerto Rico, Erin's top winds are blowing at 125 mph, making it a Category 3 hurricane on the five-step Saffir-Simpson scale, the US National Hurricane Center said in an update at 8 a.m. EDT. Erin's winds increased rapidly on Saturday to reach 160 mph, making it a scale-topping Category 5 storm and one of the earliest examples of such a powerful system to emerge in the Atlantic. In July 2024, Hurricane Beryl became earliest storm to reach top intensity during the six-month Atlantic season. In addition to its wind speeds, which are forecast to increase again, reaching 145 mph in the next day, Erin will swell in size. 'The expanding wind field will result in rough ocean conditions over much of the western Atlantic,' Senior Hurricane Specialist John Cangialosi wrote in the center's forecast. 'Given its track adjustments and increasing size, the government of the Bahamas has issued a tropical storm warning for the Turks and Caicos Islands, and a tropical storm watch for southeast Bahamas.' While Erin barely grazed Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands, it still knocked out power to many residents. About 10% of Puerto Rico was without electricity overnight, Luma Energy reported, and crews on the US Virgin Islands were working to restore energy on Sunday. If Erin holds to its forecast track, it will avoid a direct strike on any of the islands in the area or the US East Coast. It's expected to trace a shallow, c-shape arc through the western Atlantic, passing between North Carolina and Bermuda overnight Wednesday into Thursday. In addition to Erin, another tropical wave that bears watching is moving off Africa into the Atlantic, said Dan Pydynowski, a meteorologist with commercial-forecaster AccuWeather Inc. The patch of thunderstorms and showers is currently near Cabo Verde off Africa's coast and moving west across the Atlantic, with a 20% chance of becoming a storm in the next week. That part of the ocean, between the Caribbean and Africa, is known as the main development region to forecasters and it's where some of history's most deadly and damaging storms have formed. It's also a part of the ocean that becomes particularly active between mid-August and late September. 'It's that time of year, the later part of August,' Pydynowski said. 'We will have to watch that. We are quickly approaching the peak of hurricane season.' --With assistance from Alex Newman. More stories like this are available on
Hindustan Times
6 hours ago
- Hindustan Times
Will Hurricane Erin hit Florida? Storm intensifies concerns along the East Coast
Hurricane Erin, which rapidly intensified into a Category 5 storm on Saturday, August 16, has now weakened to a Category 3 hurricane with maximum sustained winds near 125 mph, according to the National Hurricane Center (NHC). Despite the reduction in wind speed, Erin is expanding in size and remains a major system to watch out for in the Atlantic, according to Naples Daily News. Hurricane Erin has weakened to a Category 3 storm but remains significant, with dangerous surf and rip currents expected along the Florida and East Coast. (Photo by Handout / NOAA / AFP) (AFP) The report added that Hurricane Erin, as of early August 17, was located about 150 miles north of Puerto Rico, moving west-northwest at 14mph. The storm's outer rainbands are already producing gusty winds and heavy rainfall across Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands, with tropical storm warnings in effect for the Turks and Caicos Islands and watches issued for the southeastern Bahamas. Hurricane Erin: Forecast track and potential impacts Forecasters expect Erin's core to pass east of the Turks and Caicos Islands and southeastern Bahamas late Sunday into Monday. A gradual turn to the north is projected on Monday and Tuesday, which should steer Erin away from a direct landfall on Florida or the southeastern United States, according to another CNN report. By midweek, the hurricane is forecast to be located roughly midway between Bermuda and the East Coast of the US. Even with the storm's center offshore, its impacts will stretch across a wide area due to its expanding wind field. Hurricane-force winds currently extend outward up to 25 miles from the center, while tropical-storm-force winds reach nearly 205 miles, CNN reports added. Florida and East Coast concerns Naples Daily News report stated that though Florida is not expected to see a direct landfall, residents and visitors have been urged to remain alert. The National Weather Service in Jacksonville has warned of dangerous rip currents and high surf along the Florida coast between August 18 and August 21. Breakers greater than seven feet are expected on August 19 and August 20, creating hazardous beach conditions. Beyond Florida, dangerous surf and rip currents will be affecting the Bahamas, Bermuda, much of the US East Coast, and Atlantic Canada in the coming days, the CNN report added. Also read: Terrifying beauty of Hurricane Erin's eye: 'Stadium effect' video takes over X While Erin's rapid intensification shocked forecasters as it jumped from a tropical storm to a Category 5 hurricane in just over 24 hours, it is not the only Atlantic hurricane to reach that intensity level. According to an Associated Press report, meteorologists said only 43 Atlantic hurricanes have ever reached Category 5 strength on record. Erin's explosive growth highlights a trend of more frequent rapid intensification events in recent years as ocean waters warm. FAQs Is Hurricane Erin headed for Florida? No. Forecasts show Erin turning north, away from Florida. However, coastal areas will still face dangerous surf and rip currents. What areas are under warning? A tropical storm warning is in effect for the Turks and Caicos Islands. A tropical storm watch is in place for the southeastern Bahamas. What impacts could Florida see? Hazardous surf, rip currents, and offshore dangerous conditions are expected from August 18 to 21, especially on August 19 and 20. How strong is Erin right now? As of Sunday morning, Erin is a Category 3 hurricane with sustained winds of 125 mph. Forecasters warn the storm could fluctuate in strength as it undergoes structural changes.
