Tropical Storm Iota was brewing in the Caribbean early on Saturday, threatening a second tropical strike for Nicaragua and Honduras, countries recently ransacked by Eta, a category 4 hurricane.
Devastating 2020 Atlantic hurricane season breaks all records
Read more
Iota is already a record-setting system, the 30th named storm of this year’s extraordinary Atlantic hurricane season. Such activity has focused attention on climate change, which scientists say is causing wetter, stronger and more destructive storms.
Eta was the 28th named storm of this year’s season, tying the 2005 record. On Saturday Theta, the 29th, was weakening over the far-eastern Atlantic ocean and was expected to become a remnant low, forecasters said.
The US National Hurricane Center in Miami said Iota could bring dangerous winds, storm surge and as much as 30in of rain to Nicaragua and Honduras, approaching their coasts as early as Monday. The system formed on Friday afternoon.
Early on Saturday, the storm was located about 340 miles south-south-east of Kingston, Jamaica, and had maximum sustained winds of 40mph. There were no coastal warnings or watches. Iota was moving to the west-south-west at 5mph.
It could wreak more havoc in a region where people are still grappling with the aftermath of Eta. That system hit Nicaragua last week as a category 4 hurricane, killing at least 120 as torrential rains brought flash floods and landslides to parts of Central America and Mexico.
Then it meandered across Cuba, the Florida Keys and around the Gulf of Mexico before slogging ashore again near Cedar Key, Florida, and dashing across Florida and the Carolinas.
The Tampa Bay area was buffeted with gusty winds and rain, and there was one US death linked to Eta. In Bradenton Beach, Mark Mixon stepped into his flooded garage as he was laying sandbags around his home Wednesday evening and was electrocuted, said Jacob Saur, director of public safety for Manatee county.
Свежие комментарии