WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — All eyes are on Tropical Storm Erin as it makes its way west, traveling west-northwest at 17 mph with max sustained winds at 70 mph.
The storm is becoming better organized and will likely become a hurricane Friday morning.
TRACKING THE TROPICS: Hurricane Center | Hurricane Guide
Erin is going to reach warmer sea temperatures as it approaches the eastern Caribbean. The storm is expected to be a hurricane by tomorrow, reaching major Category 3 status by Monday.
The NHC now forecasts the storm to become a Category 4 hurricane as it moves over even warmer water before heading east of the Bahamas.
The anticipated northward turn is important— we will keep an eye on the storm for any potential impacts to the Caribbean and Florida.
Right now, there is expected to be a weakness in the Bermuda high, which will steer the storm northward before the east coast of the U.S. However, there is still a lot of uncertainty that far out, so we won't let our guard down yet, as there could be some changes that could impact our weather or the Bahamas in the future.
The main impacts at this time will be large swells hitting the Treasure Coast, Central and northern Florida next week. The Bahamas will block any swell energy from reaching Palm Beach County southward; however, if the storm gets close, this could change.
An area in the Gulf has a medium chance of developing. It will eventually move into Mexico and South Texas over the weekend and not impact our weather here in South Florida.
