Tropical Storm Jerry expected to strengthen as it swirls past Leeward Islands
Tropical Storm Jerry on track to become a hurricane
FOX 13 meteorologist Jim Weber has the latest track on Tropical Storm Jerry.
TAMPA, Fla. - Tropical Storm Jerry continues to spin across the Atlantic and is on track to strengthen into a hurricane.
What we know:
As of 5 p.m. on Thursday, it was located at 17.3°N 60.6°W, which is about 400 miles to the east-southeast of the northern Leeward Islands.
It was moving west-northwest at 18 miles per hour and had maximum sustained winds of 65 miles per hour.
Dig deeper:
Tropical storm warnings are in effect for several islands, including Barbuda and Anguilla, St. Barthelemy, St. Martin, Sint Maarten, Guadeloupe and the adjacent islands. Tropical storm watches are in effect for Antigua, St. Kits, Nevis, Montserrat, Saba and St. Eustatius.
The NHC said that tropical storm conditions are possible in portions of the northern Leeward Islands within the watch area starting late Thursday and into Friday.
Two to four inches of rain is expected to fall across the Leeward Islands and the British and U.S. Virgin Islands. Some areas may see as much as half a foot of rain.
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That rainfall brings the risk of flash flooding, especially in areas of higher terrain.
Swells caused by Tropical Storm Jerry are expected to reach the Leeward and Windward islands on Thursday, then spread westward toward the Greater Antilles on Friday and into the weekend.
Those swells are likely to cause large waves and life-threatening rip currents at local beaches.
Despite the showers and thunderstorms, Tropical Storm Jerry is being impacted by moderate to strong wind shear, which is preventing it from strengthening at a faster rate.
Even though Tropical Storm Jerry is still forecast to become a hurricane later this week or over the weekend, some computer forecast models have it remaining a high-end tropical storm as it moves near or to the northeast of the northern Leeward Islands later Thursday and into Thursday night.
NOAA’s Hurricane Hunters are expected to fly into Tropical Storm Jerry on Thursday to investigate.
Will Tropical Storm Jerry impact Florida?
FOX 13 Meteorologist Dave Osterberg says a noreaster is going to push Jerry out to sea.
He added that this is the second time in the past few weeks that one storm pushed another one out.
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He said Jerry would go east of Bermuda.
What's next:
However, the noreaster, which will track up the eastern seaboard, is going to bring a lot of wind and rain from coastal North Carolina all the way up into New York City.
What is a nor'easter?
Osterberg added that it is called a noreaster because of the type of wind that those areas will get.
A noreaster has a counterclockwise spin which will give those locations a northeasterly wind.
Despite possible wind gusts of 50-60 miles per hour, Osterberg cautioned that this noreaster may not get a name, but it will keep Jerry away from the United States.
Invest 96L
Osterberg noted that there is a little spin in the North Atlantic, Invest 96L, that has a 10 percent chance of development over the next week, but said it is nothing to worry about.
The NHC thought enough of the storm moments later after issuing the discussion to tag the disturbance as Invest 96L – a designation that triggers additional computer forecast model runs on the budding storm.
However, it is no threat to North America.
The Source: This article was written with information in FOX 13 Meteorologist Dave Osterberg’s forecast, the National Hurricane Center and FOX Weather.