PHILIPSBURG--Coming on the heels of what was Tropical Storm Danny is Tropical Storm Erika. The storm was named by the Miami-based National Hurricane Center (NHC) in its 11:00pm bulletin yesterday.
Interests in the Eastern Caribbean should monitor Erika’s progress, said NHC. Watches may be required for a portion of the Leeward Islands early Tuesday. No coastal watches or warnings were in effect last night.
Tropical Storm Erika’s centre was located at 11:00pm Tuesday near latitude 14.4 North, longitude 47.7 West, moving West near 20 miles per hour (31 km/h). A Westward to West-Northwestward motion with some decrease in forward speed is expected during the next couple of days.
Buoy observations and satellite wind data indicated that the maximum sustained winds were near 45mph (75km/h) with higher gusts and some strengthening is forecast during the next couple of days. Tropical storm force winds extend outward up to 80 miles (130km) from the centre. On Sunday evening, NOAA buoy 41041 had reported sustained winds of 45mph with a gust to 51mph. The estimated minimum central pressure based on data from the NOAA buoy was 1003mb (29.62 inches).
