As Tropical Storm Fiona moves westward and has an impact on the Caribbean islands, a hurricane warning has been issued for Puerto Rico.
On Saturday, as Fiona gets closer, more than 80,000 residents in Puerto Rico are also without electricity. Rain and thunderstorms are now happening closer to the tropical storm’s center of circulation, and the storm’s maximum sustained winds have topped out at about 60 mph.
According to Reuters, a man died on Guadeloupe, a French Caribbean island, on Friday night as a result of floods brought on by tropical storm Fiona’s torrential rains. After his home in the Basse-Terre neighborhood was destroyed by floodwaters on Saturday, the guy was discovered dead.
Over the coming days, Fiona is predicted to gradually gain power, and by the middle of the workweek, she might be a hurricane over the southwest Atlantic near the Bahamas.
Across the weekend, Fiona’s wind and rain effects are anticipated to move from the northeastern Caribbean islands to the west through Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic.
TROPICAL STORM FIONA: WHERE IS SHE? Caribbean Storm Fiona is producing a sizable region of showers and thunderstorms on the eastern side of its center of circulation, which is located about 200 miles southeast of Puerto Rico.
A tropical cyclone with maximum sustained winds of 39 to 73 mph is referred to as a tropical storm. The National Hurricane Center selects a name for a developing tropical storm from one of six rotating lists.
Tracking Tropical Storm Fiona, image 1. , FOX Weather WHICH ARE THE APPLICABLE WATCHES AND WARNINGS? Puerto Rico, including Vieques and Culebra, is under a hurricane warning. For the Dominican Republic’s north and south coasts as well as the U.S. Virgin Islands, a hurricane watch has been issued.
A hurricane watch has also been issued by the Dominican Republic’s governor for the country’s southern coast from Cabo Engano to Cabo Cauedo and its northern coast from Cabo Engano to Puerto Piata.
Several island nations in the northern Caribbean have received Tropical Storm Watches and Warnings.
Saba and St. Eustatius, St. Maarten, Guadeloupe, St. Barthelemy, St. Martin, the U.S. Virgin Islands, the British Virgin Islands, and portions of the Dominican Republic are among the islands under a Tropical Storm Warning.
A tropical storm warning indicates that within the next 36 hours sustained winds of at least 39 mph are anticipated. The U.S. Virgin Islands will experience tropical storm-force winds on Saturday, followed by Puerto Rico late Saturday and into Saturday night, according to the National Hurricane Center. Tropical storm-force winds will start in the northeastern Caribbean islands on Friday afternoon.
When there is a tropical storm watch, sustained winds of at least 39 mph are anticipated within the following 48 hours. The British Virgin Islands and Dominica are under tropical storm watches on Friday and Saturday, respectively, according to the National Hurricane Center.
Along Fiona’s route, Tropical Storm Watches and Warnings are in effect. , FOX Weather WHAT IS THE TROPICAL STORM FIONA FORECAST? The main motion of Tropical Storm Fiona is predicted to be westward through early Sunday before veering west-northwest and northwest later Sunday and into Sunday night.
Fiona will proceed over the northeastern Caribbean from Saturday into Sunday, tracking close to or just south of Puerto Rico, the British and U.S. Virgin Islands, and the British Virgin Islands. On Sunday night or early Monday, Tropical Storm Fiona will move toward the southern coast of the Dominican Republic.
Fiona is forecast to gradually grow over the coming days, and as it approaches the southern coast of the Dominican Republic Sunday night and early Monday, it may be close to hurricane status (74 mph).
The route and strength of Tropical Storm Fiona as predicted. , FOX Weather After crossing the Dominican Republic early next week, Tropical Storm Fiona is expected to intensify even further. By the middle of the following week, it may be a hurricane over the southwest Atlantic near the Bahamas.
WHAT ARE TROPICAL STORM FIONA’S IMPACTS?
The National Hurricane Center’s acting director, Jamie Rhome, delivers an update on Tropical Storm Fiona and what the public should anticipate from it.
The Dominican Republic and Turks and Caicos are anticipated to experience Fiona’s wind and rain on Sunday and Monday night or Tuesday, respectively.
From Friday evening to Monday afternoon, flood watches have been issued for Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Caribbean Storm The British and U.S. Virgin Islands, as well as the northern Caribbean islands, are forecast to get 3 to 6 inches of rain from Fiona.
4 to 8 inches of rain are expected to fall on Puerto Rico, with isolated quantities of up to 12 inches possible in eastern and southern regions.
Between 6 and 10 inches of rain are predicted for the eastern Dominican Republic, with isolated maximum totals in the higher terrain reaching 16 inches.
Early in the next week, 4 to 8 inches of rain are expected to fall on the Turks and Caicos.
Tropical Storm Fiona is expected to bring rain through Tuesday. , FOX Weather The FOX Forecast Center said that because Puerto Rico’s soils have been saturated by recent rain, Fiona’s heavy rain might cause floods in cities and small streams as well as mudslides in the hilly terrain of the territory.
Flash and urban flooding, as well as the possibility of mudslides in places of higher terrain, will also pose a hazard to other island nations from the northern Caribbean through the Turks and Caicos. The eastern Dominican Republic and southern and eastern Puerto Rico have the highest risk of mudslides.
WILL FLORIDA OR THE US EAST COAST BE AT RISK FROM TROPICAL STORM FIONA? After passing over the Dominican Republic, Tropical Storm Fiona’s exact course is still unknown. The FOX Forecast Center claims that while they can’t be completely ruled out, the prospects of any U.S. consequences are currently minimal. Any threat to Florida or the East Coast of the United States would, however, be at least a week away.
Early next week, a jet stream trough is anticipated to pass across Florida and the Bahamas, giving Fiona a chance to shift north.
Fiona is more likely to stay a stronger storm and make this northward shift if it travels south of Puerto Rico and avoids the Dominican Republic’s highlands. This would boost the likelihood that Fiona will move out into the Atlantic Ocean’s open waters and avoid the United States.
Fiona will have a higher chance of sticking west and moving closer to Florida or the U.S. East Coast if it tracks closer to those islands and weakens after colliding with the mountains of Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic.
According to Bryan Norcross, a hurricane specialist at FOX Weather, “when storms pass through those mountainous islands, the outcomes are unexpected, making it impossible to know what state Fiona will be in if it pursues that trajectory.”
The map below displays the various Fiona’s track scenarios placed on the five-day forecast cone of uncertainty. As you can see, there is a wide range of computer forecast model predictions.
Models of spaghetti for Tropical Storm Fiona, image 5. , FOX Weather The computer forecast models show a weather pattern that is favorable for redevelopment over the Atlantic waters “when and if the storm reaches the Atlantic and if it still has a circulation,” Norcross added. Consequently, it is important for everyone to keep informed in Florida, the Bahamas, and along the US East Coast.
As the specifics become clearer over the coming days, be sure to check back with FOX Weather for updates.
TWO OTHER AREAX IN THE ATLANTIC TO WATCH Unorganized showers and thunderstorms are being produced in the western Atlantic Ocean by a low-pressure system that is centered a few hundred miles west-northwest of Bermuda.
Due to strong upper-level winds, the development of this system into a tropical depression or tropical storm is not anticipated. Instead, it is predicted to drift east to east-southeastward at 10 to 15 mph.
We are keeping an eye on a region in the western Atlantic Ocean for potential tropical development. , FOX Weather The northern end of a tropical disturbance in the middle Atlantic Ocean is causing erratic showers and thunderstorms.
The FOX Forecast Center predicts that as this disturbance progresses from the northwest to the north across the central subtropical Atlantic, it may slowly intensify early next week.
The probability of the tropical disturbance developing over the next five days is currently low, according to the National Hurricane Center.
We are keeping an eye on a region in the central Atlantic Ocean for potential tropical development. 2022 ATLANTIC HURRICANE SEASON OFF TO A SLOW START (FOX Weather) The hottest sea surface temperatures, lower level winds, and generally sparse distribution of dry air occur from early to mid-September.
Dry air has been more prevalent than typical in the eastern regions of the Atlantic Basin, in contrast to recent active years, which has hampered the formation and development of tropical storms.
Since June 1, just six systems have been named, which is a slow start for the Atlantic hurricane season. The combination of Saharan dust, dry air, and unfavorable winds that is keeping the season quiet and surprise many was discussed by Brandy Campbell of FOX Weather with experts.
Only the second time in the satellite era did August end without the Atlantic Basin witnessing a single tropical storm.
Nine named storms and four hurricanes usually have formed by this point during an average year , however so far in 2022, there have only been six named storms and two hurricanes.
Although the Atlantic hurricane season is technically from June 1 to November 30, September 10 has historically seen the greatest number of hurricanes and tropical storms. , FOX Weather
