The storm could hit some islands in the eastern Caribbean on Thursday and Friday at near hurricane strength.
Tropical Storm Bret made its way towards the eastern Caribbean on Tuesday and forecasters warned it could develop into a hurricane before approaching the Lesser Antilles, which have already braced for an unusually early storm.
Bret had maximum sustained winds of 40 miles per hour and moved across the Atlantic at 17 miles per hour. According to the National Hurricane Center in Miami, it is expected to develop into a hurricane over the next few days but then weaken before approaching the Lesser Antilles.
The storm could hit some islands in the eastern Caribbean on Thursday and Friday at near hurricane strength.
“Both the atmospheric and oceanic environment appear conducive to strengthening unusually warm sea water over the next few days,” the center said.
Meteorologists warned of strong winds, dangerous storm surges and waves, and flooding from heavy rainfall. They urged people in the Lesser Antilles, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands to monitor the storm closely and implement their hurricane plans.
Also read how Tropical Storm Bret is forming, which could become the first Atlantic hurricane this year
“Given the above-average uncertainty in the route forecast, it is too early to indicate the location and extent of where these hazards could occur,” the center said.
Vertical winds and drier air are expected to later weaken Bret as it travels through the central Caribbean region and potentially target southern Haiti as a tropical storm.
The storm formed Monday, an early and aggressive start to the Atlantic hurricane season that began June 1.
Colorado State University meteorologist Philip Klotzbach said it was only the second hurricane to form in the tropical Atlantic in June since records began. The previous hurricane was Trinidad, which formed in 1933.
A tropical disturbance with a 60% chance of cyclone formation follows Bret. Klotzbach noted that there have not been two tropical Atlantic storms in any June since records began.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has forecast 12 to 17 named storms for this year’s hurricane season.
He said between five and nine of those storms could become hurricanes, including up to four severe Category 3 or higher hurricanes.
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