Chances dialed back for tropical system to form in Atlantic
The National Hurricane Center lowered the chances an Atlantic system could form into the season’s next tropical depression or storm.
In its 8 p.m. tropical outlook Tuesday, the NHC said the area of disorganized thunderstorms related to a low-pressure system was located about 600 miles southeast of Bermuda.
“Environmental conditions are becoming less favorable for tropical cyclone formation, and the low is expected to move northward and merge with a frontal system over the north-central Atlantic in about two to three days,” forecasters said.
Its path takes it up into the middle of the Atlantic, so it is no threat to land.
Forecasters give it a 20% chance to form in the next two days and a 20% chance in the next seven. The system had been given as high as 70% chance to form as late as Sunday.
If it were to spin up into named-storm status, it could become Tropical Storm Emily, the fifth named system of the Atlantic hurricane season that runs from June 1-Nov. 30.
The NHC earlier Tuesday dropped to 0% the chance of formation of a system sporting galeforce winds in the western Atlantic several hundred miles south of Cape Race, Newfoundland.
The nontropical low-pressure system that emerged off the coast of the Carolinas over the weekend had merged with a frontal system and was not expected to develop further.
While the season’s tropical systems have not been a major threat to Florida so far, the state has been producing its own series of severe weather of late.
Monday’s storm systems bubbled up over Central and South Florida, causing havoc on the highways in the afternoon and several warnings with winds up to 60 mph and hail along with flood advisories, with 2-4 inches dropping in a short amount of time along the east coast from Volusia County down to Palm Beach County.
Last week rainfall associated with a tropical wave doused the state as it moved up the coast and into the southeast U.S., dropping as much as 5 inches in some places, according to the National Weather Service.