Tropical Storm Elsa Forms, What Does That Mean For Us
The first month of Hurricane season has been fairly quiet for the Gulf of Mexico. However, that could change in the next few days. Tropical Storm Elsa has just formed (insert Frozen reference here) this morning with sustained winds of 40mph and gusts of 50 mph. It has since gained a bit of strength and has picked up speed in its westward movement.
Early on the forecast shows the storm will strengthen to Category on status as it reaches the Southeastern Gulf of Mexico by early next week. The current storm models show the storm will remain in the Eastern Gulf or Florida by Tuesday and into the middle of next week. No threats to SE Texas expected at this time, however, this is the time to prepare because things can change!
If you remember back in 2004, Hurricane Ivan started in a similar area and proceeded to have one of the most bizarre paths in hurricane history. Who remembers this?
As of now, a Tropical Storm Warning has been issued for Barbados. On its current path, the system is expected to pass over the islands on Friday, move into the Caribbean Sea on Friday afternoon or evening, and then move near the southern coast of Hispanola on Saturday.