MIAMI, (Reuters) – Tropical Storm Ernesto kept on a westerly course in the Caribbean Sea today and was expected to strengthen slowly over the next 48 hours, soaking Jamaica as it passed the island on its way to Mexico’s Yucatan, U.S. forecasters said.
Wet and windy conditions were felt in Jamaica which caught the outer rain bands of Ernesto, according to Jamaica’s emergency management office.
Ernesto’s winds and rain failed to dampen the spirits of many Jamaicans who gathered in large street parties in the capital Kingston to watch their star sprinter Usain Bolt race to victory in the 100 meters track final at the Olympics Games.
Tropical storm conditions were possible along the coast of Honduras by late Monday, the National Hurricane Center said. A tropical storm watch advisory was also issued for Grand Cayman.
Ernesto was following a predicted track that should keep it at sea until a forecast landfall, possibly at hurricane strength, over Mexico’s Yucatan peninsula on Wednesday.
The storm was 220 miles (355 km) south-south-west of Jamaica, and 305 miles (496 km) east of the coast of Honduras at around 5p.m. EDT on Sunday, moving west at about 20 mph (32 kph) with maximum sustained winds around 50 mph (85 kph).
Heavy rains were expected throughout today in Hispaniola and Puerto Rico. Three to 6 inches (7.6 to 15.2 cm) were expected in Jamaica and authorities warned of flooding in low-lying areas along the south coast. Showers and thunderstorms, sometimes severe, were possible on the islands of Aruba, Curacao and Bonaire off Venezuela’s northern coast.
“Ernesto is forecast to become a hurricane in the northwestern Caribbean in a day or two,” the U.S. forecasters in Miami said.
Ernesto would be deemed a hurricane if its winds reach 74 mph (119 kph).
Forecasters expect Ernesto to move into the southern Gulf of Mexico by Thursday but it was too early to know whether it could disrupt oil and gas operations in the gulf.
U.S. National Hurricane Center forecasters said another tropical storm, called Florence, formed on Saturday in the eastern Atlantic and was moving west in open waters. As of early today, forecasters said Florence was about 680 miles (1,090 km) west of the Cape Verde Islands.
With maximum sustained winds of 60 mph (95 kph), Florence was the sixth named storm of the Atlantic-Caribbean hurricane season, moving west-northwest at 15 mph (24 kph). Some strengthening was expected over the next day or two.
August and September are usually the most active months of the Atlantic-Caribbean hurricane season, which runs from June 1 to Nov. 30.
