San Juan, Puerto Rico.- Forecasters on Monday issued a tropical storm watch for several islands in the northeastern Caribbean, including Puerto Rico, the U.S. and British Virgin Islands, Antigua, Barbuda, Anguilla, St. Kitts, Nevis, Montserrat, Guadeloupe, St. Barthelemy and St. Martin.
The U.S. National Hurricane Center expects the storm to become a tropical depression later Monday and then strengthen into a tropical storm as it approaches the northeastern Caribbean. It is then forecast to become a hurricane on Thursday when it turns north toward Bermuda. Some forecasters expect the storm to strengthen into a Category 3 hurricane.
The disturbance is forecast to become Ernesto, the fifth named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season.
Meteorologists predict the system will cause flooding and landslides.
Authorities are forecasting rain in Guadeloupe on Monday and near Saint Barthelemy and Saint Martin.
The Miami-based hurricane center forecast the storm would approach Puerto Rico and the U.S. and British Virgin Islands on Tuesday night.
The disturbance is located about 700 kilometres (435 miles) east-southeast of Antigua. It has maximum sustained winds of 55 kilometres per hour (35 miles per hour) and is moving west at 43 km/h (26 mph).
The U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is forecasting an above-average Atlantic hurricane season this year due to record-warm ocean temperatures. It predicts 17 to 25 named storms, and four to seven Category 3 or higher hurricanes.
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