Invest 94L/Imelda: A tropical wave near Hispaniola and the Turks and Caicos is showing signs of strengthening. Forecasters expect it to form a low-pressure system today as it moves into the southeastern Bahamas, with a good chance it becomes a tropical depression by later today or over the weekend.
Whether it develops or not, the system is already bringing heavy rain and gusty winds to parts of the Dominican Republic, Haiti, and the Turks and Caicos, and that weather will likely spread to the Bahamas and eastern Cuba soon.
There’s still uncertainty in its path and strength, but the risk of wind, rain, and coastal impacts along parts of the Southeast U.S. is growing. Residents in those areas should keep an eye on this system.
Humberto is now a hurricane, and gaining strength in the western Atlantic, with winds now up to 75 mph. Satellite images show the storm becoming more organized, with tall, cold cloud tops and active thunderstorms mainly on its eastern side. It’s moving slowly right now due to weak steering winds, but it’s expected to pick up speed and head northwest, eventually turning north by the weekend.
Conditions around Humberto are very favorable for rapid strengthening — warm ocean waters, moist air, and light wind shear. Because of that, expect it to intensify significantly over the next few days, possibly reaching major hurricane status by the weekend. Humberto will stay well east of us (~800miles) and not impact our weather, but we will have coastal impacts with large swells in combination with Imelda next week.
TRACKING THE TROPICS: Hurricane Center | Hurricane Guide
