Five storms brewing across the Atlantic

(CNS): After a relatively quiet first half the 2023 Atlantic hurricane season, five systems are currently brewing between the Cape Verde Islands and Mexico, none of which appear to threaten the Cayman Islands. By Monday morning Tropical Storm Emily, which formed on Sunday, had already weakened to a depression, while Franklin, which is heading north towards Hispaniola and Puerto Rico, is expected to strengthen.

Gert, located several hundred miles east of the northern Leeward Islands, is expected to dissipate later today. However, another two systems either side of the Atlantic Ocean may become named storms.

The National Hurricane Center is giving Tropical Cyclone Nine a 90% chance of becoming a storm in the next 48 hours as it heads towards Mexico and Texas, while the NHC said that a tropical wave over the Cabo Verde Islands and portions of the tropical eastern Atlantic appeared conducive for gradual development into a tropical storm later this week as it moves west-northwest.

The increase in stormy weather was not unexpected as most hurricane experts have recently called for an increase in activity over the coming weeks. But forecasters remain uncertain about how busy this season will be due to the conflicting impacts of the El Niño conditions and the exceptionally warm waters in both the Atlantic and the Caribbean Sea.

Cayman has experienced some of the hottest sea surface temperatures in recorded history this summer. As a result, officials here are urging everyone to be prepared for sudden storms and hurricanes, regardless of the medium-term predictions.