As Tropical Depression Fred Heads Into The Gulf, Another Storm Forms In The Atlantic (World)

 

HAVANA — In the Atlantic Ocean, Tropical Storm Grace formed Saturday morning, while Tropical Depression Fred remained a tropical depression heading into the eastern Gulf of Mexico.

Heavy rain and flooding were forecast from both systems. According to the US National Hurricane Center, Fred, which has previously been classed as a tropical storm, could reach that classification later in the day or on Sunday.

Grace was situated approximately 355 miles (570 kilometers) east-southeast of the Leeward Islands, according to the center's 8 a.m. EDT advisory, and may approach the Lesser Antilles by Saturday night. It was traveling west at 22 miles per hour (35 kilometers per hour), with maximum sustained winds of 40 miles per hour (65 kph).

The British Virgin Islands, the US Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico have all been issued with a tropical storm warning. The British Virgin Islands were under a tropical storm warning. Grace is expected to arrive at the Dominican Republic on Monday, according to forecasters.

Grace was expected to dump 3 to 6 inches of rain on the Leeward Islands, Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico on Monday.Fred, however, remained a tropical depression with maximum winds of 35 miles per hour (55 kph). The system looks "disorganized," according to forecasters, who expect it to pass west of the lower Florida Keys on Saturday afternoon before moving into the eastern Gulf of Mexico.

For the Florida Keys west of the Seven Mile Bridge to the Dry Tortugas, a tropical storm warning was in force. Fred was 25 miles (40 kilometers) west of Havana and 125 miles (nearly 200 kilometers) south of Key West on Saturday morning, and it was moving west-northwest at 13 mph (20 kph).

By spinning over Haiti and the Dominican Republic, Fred, which had been a tropical storm, had fallen to a depression.It knocked out power to 400,000 consumers and created floods, forcing officials to shut down part of the country's aqueduct system, causing hundreds of thousands of people to go without water. Hundreds of people were evacuated, and some structures were damaged, according to local officials.

Through Monday, Fred was anticipated to dump 3 to 5 inches (7.5 to 12.5 cm) of rain on the Keys and southern Florida.

Tourists and residents in Monroe County will not be evacuated, officials announced Friday. People in campsites, recreational vehicles, travel trailers, live-aboard watercraft, and mobile homes are being advised to take shelter by emergency management officials in the county. During the weather event, stay in a secure structure.