Tropical Storm Don forms in the Atlantic

Tropical Storm Don has formed in the Atlantic a few hundred miles east of the Caribbean, the National Hurricane Center said Monday afternoon.

Asked if Don was a threat to Florida, U.S. Navy Hurricane Specialist Dave Roberts said “negative.”

That’s because Don was pretty far south and was also expected to dissipate within 72 hours after encountering unfavorable conditions.

“We’re expecting the environment to become more of a hindrance because of the [wind] shear,” Roberts said.

But Don has resulted in a tropical storm warning being issued for Grenada, an island on the southeastern perimeter of the Caribbean.

Tropical storm watches have also been issued for some of the islands north of Grenada, including Barbados, St. Vincent and the and St. Lucia.

Warnings mean tropical stormconditionsareexpected within 24 to 36 hours, while watches mean those conditions are possible over that time frame.

Don is the 2017 Atlantic hurricane season’s fourth named storm — the latest in what’s been a busy start to the season.

According to a tweet from hurricane expert Phil Klotzbach at Colorado State University, on average it takes until Aug. 23 to reach the fourth named storm of the season.

Hurricane forecasters say a busy start doesn’t necessarily meanthings will staythatway, but they’ve also predicted that this hurricane season will see above-average activity.

So far, the 2017 Atlantic hurricane season has seen three previous tropical storms, Arlene, Bret and Cindy. Grenadines,