Tropical Storm Philippe remains in the Atlantic. Forecasters expect something else soon
As Tropical Storm Philippe meanders across the Atlantic Ocean, another system following Philippe’s path is expected to develop before the weekend.
Here’s what’s known about Philippe and the trailing tropical wave as of Tuesday’s updates.
Is Tropical Storm Philippe headed for the Caribbean?
Puerto Rico is in the projected possible path of a struggling Tropical Storm Philippe, which was 845 miles east of the Northern Leeward Islands at 11 a.m. Tuesday with maximum sustained winds dropping to 45 mph after two steady days at 50 mph. Tropical storm force winds extend up to 175 miles from Philippe’s center, 60 more miles than most of Sunday and Monday.
No warnings or watches are in effect yet, however.
“Philippe is moving toward the west near 14 mph and a west to west-northwest motion is forecast to continue for the next few days,” senior hurricane specialist John Cangialosi said Tuesday morning, adding, “gradual weakening is expected during the next few days.”
How soon will AL91 be the next tropical depression?
The rain and thunderstorms with the tropical wave called AL91, roughly halfway between the Cabo Verde Islands and the Lesser Antilles, are continuing “to become better organized in association with an area of low pressure,” the hurricane center said at the 8 p.m. Tuesday advisory.
The hurricane center expects west-northwest movement and a tropical depression in the next day or so. If it turns into a named storm AL91 would be Rina.
“Like its counterpart to the west, [Al91] poses no immediate concerns for land,” said WPLG hurricane specialist Michael Lowry in his Eye on the Tropics blog on Tuesday. “October is a time when we turn our attention from the deep Atlantic to the western Caribbean for tropical threats” so South Florida should keep alert over the next few weeks for potential threats, Lowry wrote.
Formation chance through 48 hours and seven days: 90%.
Miami Herald Reporter Devoun Cetoute contributed to this report.
