Tropical Storm Philippe is expected to pass near the northern Leeward Islands later today with maximum sustained winds of 50 mph.
A tropical storm watch is in effect for Antigua and Barbuda and the country is expected to be impacted by the weather
Philippe is forecast to produce four to six inches of rainfall over Antigua and Barbuda and two to four inches over the rest of the Leeward Islands.
The country’s leading Climatologist Dale Destin said in a report late last night that the likelihood of experiencing storm-force winds from Philippe is steadily decreasing, with probabilities now dropping to less than 30% for Barbuda and less than 10% for Antigua.
“If this trend persists, we may consider lifting the tropical storm watch within the next 12 hours”, he said
The Miami-based National Hurricane Centre (NHC) has warned that the storm could bring heavy rains and flooding to portions of the Leeward Islands.
The NHC has advised interests in the northern Leeward Islands to monitor the progress of this system, which is moving towards the northwest at a speed of seven mph.
The NHC has predicted that this motion will continue through early Tuesday, with a turn towards the north-northwest expected by late Tuesday, followed by a northward motion on Wednesday.
According to the NHC, on the forecast track, the center of Philippe is expected to pass near or just northeast of the northern Leeward Islands later today and tonight.
The NHC has also warned that Philippe could begin to intensify more significantly around the middle of the week.
Tropical-storm-force winds extend outward up to 175 miles primarily east and southeast of the center.
The NHC has cautioned that swells generated by Philippe will affect portions of the Atlantic coasts of the northern Leeward Islands, the Virgin Islands, and Puerto Rico through midweek.
These swells are likely to cause life-threatening surf and rip current conditions.
If the storm is so close to Antigua and Barbuda, why is there no Warning issued, but merely a Watch?