BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – ALL eyes are focused on Hurricane Irma which is currently on a path to hit the Leeward Islands sometime early next week, according to a meteorologist.
Meteorologist Elmo Burke confirmed to SKNVibes today (Aug. 31) that shortly after 11:00 a.m. Tropical Storm Irma was upgraded to a hurricane.
The storm, which has been out in the Atlantic Ocean for several days, is barrelling towards the Caribbean and is expected to become a major hurricane when it arrives next week.
“It is going to be in the vicinity of the island by sometime next week. We are monitoring it to see and, as more and more details come in, we are processing it,” Burke said.
Early morning reports had indicated that the storm was closing in on hurricane strength and was located 590 miles west of the Cabo Verde Islands.
In a statement released yesterday afternoon (Aug. 30), National Disaster Coordinator (NDC) Carl Herbert announced that they were monitoring a system of “disturbed weather” that was recently upgraded to Tropical Storm Irma.
The statement noted that the storm is being jointly monitored by NEMA and the St. Kitts Meteorological Services.
According to a report from the Express Newspaper, “…you can see we need to monitor this for sections of Leeward Islands and also northeastern Caribbean.”
In the statement, Coordinator Herbert stressed that there is no certainty as to the strength or potential impact of the developing storm, adding that it is better to err on the side of caution.
He is urging citizens and residents of St. Kitts and Nevis to do whatever is necessary to protect their lives and those of their loved ones.
“We implore you to take the advice of the Met Office, NEMA, District Volunteers and other Disaster Management Personnel by staying connected to local media and by ensuring you have some form of a disaster plan for your home.”
He continued: “We want to remind residents to stay away from known waterways and ghauts. For some reason we have to repeat this every year, especially during the Season, and we ask that persons inspect their property for any loose items or heavy materials that may be picked up during heavy winds and become deadly missiles.”
Meanwhile, Bruke is asking persons to pay attention to the various media platforms as he and the Met Office would be providing daily updates on the storm.
The National Hurricane Center in its 11:00 a.m. update disclosed that the center of Hurricane Irma was located near latitude 16.9 North, longitude 33.8 West, and is moving west-northwest near 10 mph (17 km/h).
“This general motion is forecast through early Friday, followed by a generally westward motion on Saturday.”
According to the NHC, the hurricane’s maximum sustained winds have increased to near 100 mph (155 km/h) with higher gusts. Irma is forecast to become a major hurricane by tonight and is expected to be an extremely dangerous one for the next several days.
Hurricane-force winds extend outward up to 15 miles (30 km) from the
center and tropical-storm-force winds extend outward up to 80 miles
(130 km), the NHC noted.
And the estimated minimum central pressure is 979 mb (28.91 inches).
