Puerto Rico is on high alert as Tropical Storm Ernesto bears down.
The storm formed in the Atlantic Ocean on Monday, prompting the island to activate the National Guard and delay the start of public school classes.
Ernesto is the fifth named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season.
As of late Monday, Ernesto was located approximately 230 miles east-southeast of Antigua, with maximum sustained winds of 40 mph and advancing westward at 28 mph.
Ernesto is set to hit Puerto Rico tomorrow, with winds of 57 mph. (Source: Windy.com) Ernesto is set to hit Puerto Rico tomorrow, with winds of 57 mph. (Source: Windy.com)
Tropical storm warnings have been issued for Puerto Rico, Vieques, Culebra, the U.S. and British Virgin Islands, as well as several Caribbean islands including Antigua, Barbuda, and St. Kitts.
Forecasters have warned of severe impacts, with Ernesto expected to bring heavy rain, flooding, and landslides.
The National Hurricane Center predicts the storm will approach Puerto Rico and the U.S. and British Virgin Islands by Tuesday evening.
“We cannot let our guard down,” stressed Nino Correa, Puerto Rico’s emergency management commissioner, during a news conference.
Forecasters have warned of severe impacts heavy rain, flooding, and landslides. (Source: Windy.com)
Puerto Rican Gov. Pedro Pierluisi announced the opening of over 340 shelters across the island and the deployment of more than 200 National Guard personnel.
Ernesto Morales from the National Weather Service in San Juan indicated that Puerto Rico could see between six to eight inches of rain, with higher totals in isolated areas.
He also warned of potential hurricane-strength wind gusts as the storm moves across northeast Puerto Rico late Tuesday and into early Wednesday.
Morales said that the storm’s path is unpredictable. “This trajectory is not written in stone and will be changing,” he said, urging residents to remain vigilant.
Ernesto was packing maximum sustained winds of 40 mph as of late Monday. (Source: Windy.com)
The fragile state of Puerto Rico’s power grid, still under repair since Hurricane Maria’s devastating impact in September 2017, raises concerns about widespread power outages.
Juan Saca, president of Luma Energy, which manages the island’s power transmission and distribution, acknowledged the risk. “That’s a reality,” Saca stated.
Similar concerns exist in the neighboring U.S. Virgin Islands, where officials have already announced islandwide blackouts on St. John and St. Thomas.
U.S. Virgin Islands Gov. Albert Bryan Jr. urged residents to take the storm seriously, describing it as “a practice run to make sure we’re really prepared” for the peak of the hurricane season.
Looking ahead, Ernesto is projected to strengthen into a hurricane by early Thursday as it shifts northward toward Bermuda.
Some forecasts suggest it could escalate into a major Category 3 storm.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has predicted an above-average hurricane season, forecasting 17 to 25 named storms and four to seven major hurricanes of Category 3 or higher, due to record warm ocean temperatures.
Last week, storm Debby claimed at least five lives across Florida and brought 80 mph winds, storm surges and flash flooding.
The storm triggered tornado warnings for Washington D.C. and deposited more than a foot of rain in some regions.
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