Will tropical storm Bret become a hurricane? Where is it headed?
Tropical storm Bret has formed in the Atlantic and is expected to become a hurricane this week as it moves across the Lesser Antilles in the Caribbean Sea.
Tropical storm Bret has formed in the central Atlantic Ocean and is likely to strengthen into a hurricane later this week. Bret currently has winds of 40 mph and is moving to the west, projected to reach hurricane status on Wednesday night as it travels toward the Caribbean.
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Tropical storm Bret to bring flood risk
According to the National Hurricane Center in Miami, Florida, Bret will “strengthen and then move across the Lesser Antilles near hurricane intensity on Thursday and Friday, bringing a risk of flooding from heavy rainfall, strong winds, and dangerous storm surge and waves.”
The center says that “it is too early to specify the location and magnitude of where these hazards could occur,” given the larger than usual uncertainty in the track forecast.
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Environmental conditions conducive to hurricane formation
The NHC says that environmental conditions such as a warmer ocean and an abundance of moisture will combine to help strengthen the weather system. Bret already has a big area of showers and thunderstorms that continue to organize.
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Depending on the trajectory of the storm over the next few days, Bret could hit Puerto Rico by Saturday morning, and the Dominican Republic and Haiti by Saturday afternoon. It is too early to tell if the storm will affect Florida.
The hurricane center is reminding those who live in the Lesser Antilles, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands to closely monitor updates to the forecast for Bret, and also to have their hurricane plan in place.