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Tropical Storm Ida forms in the Caribbean, U.S. landfall expected
Two weeks away from peak hurricane season and we’re tracking two tropical waves and a tropical storm. Tropical Storm Ida is eyeing coastal Louisiana this weekend.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The historic peak of hurricane season is September 10th, but it is late August and September that some of the more notable storms have formed and even impacted the Carolinas. As of August 26th, there are three active tropical disturbances in the Atlantic and Caribbean.
Tropical Storm Ida
Location: West-Central Caribbean Sea
Potential Impacts: Yucatan Peninsula, United States northern Gulf coast
As of 5 p.m. Thursday, Hurricane Hunters have found Tropical Storm Ida in the Caribbean Sea. The storm is currently located about 130 miles southeast of Grand Cayman Island.
Tropical Storm Ida will be near the Isle of Youth and western Cuba Friday before emerging into the southeastern and central Gulf of Mexico this weekend. The system is forecast to approach the U.S. northern Gulf coast on Sunday.
The latest track from the National Hurricane Center suggests a Category 2 hurricane nearing the Louisiana coast by Sunday afternoon. Watches may be required for parts of the northern Gulf coast later tonight or Friday morning.
Locally heavy rainfall, mudslides, storm surge, and flooding are possible over portions of Jamaica, the Cayman Islands, across Cuba, and the Yucatan Peninsula this week. By this weekend, that threat could overspread into the coasts of Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and the Florida Panhandle.
Wave Number 1: Invest 97-L (Orange/Red)
Location: 600 miles east of Bermuda
Development Chance: 70% within the next five days
Potential Impacts: Mid-Atlantic Ocean
Development potential has lowered slightly for Invest 97-L over the past 24 hours. The low pressure is still producing showers and thunderstorms east of Bermuda.
Conditions are marginally favorable for development late this week and this weekend, so a tropical depression could form as it drifts slowly eastward.
The system is expected to stay well away from the United States east coast, but depending on the strength, the swells could impact the island of Bermuda.
Wave Number 2: Invest 98-L (Yellow)
Location: Middle Atlantic
Development Chance: 70% within the next five days
Potential Impacts: Atlantic Ocean
An area of disorganized showers and thunderstorms continues to churn in the eastern Atlantic Ocean. Moderate development is possible within the next few days, however, unfavorable conditions are expected this weekend.
Wondering which names are next on the 2021 list? Here they are: