(Reuters) – The third topical low of the 2023 hurricane season has formed in the central tropical Atlantic and is expected to become a hurricane within days, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said on Monday.
The low, about 1,425 miles (2,295 km) east of the Southern Windward Islands, is producing maximum sustained winds of 35 miles per hour (55 km per hour), the Miami-based forecaster said.
“The low is expected to strengthen and move through the Lesser Antilles as a hurricane on Thursday and Friday, bringing a risk of flooding from heavy rain, hurricane-force winds and dangerous storm surges and waves.” , the hurricane center said.
Although it is too early to specify the location and extent of where these dangers could occur, the center has urged authorities in the Lesser Antilles, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands to closely monitor the system. and put hurricane plans in place.
If the depression turns into a hurricane, it would be the first of the 2023 season, which lasts from June to November.
A slightly below-average 2023 Atlantic hurricane season is looming with an El Nino weather phenomenon dampening storm prospects, Colorado State University researchers predicted in April.
(Reporting by Deep Vakil and Seher Dareen in Bengaluru; editing by Jonathan Oatis)