Tropical disturbance no current threat to Jamaica

The United States National Hurricane Center has projected that a tropical disturbance in the central Atlantic has a 70 per cent chance of developing into a tropical depression within the next seven days.

The system, currently located about 500 miles southwest of the Cabo Verde Islands, is producing limited shower and thunderstorm activity but is expected to encounter more favourable conditions for development over the next several days.

The NHC says a tropical depression will likely form during the latter half of this week as the system tracks westward to west-northwestward across the central tropical Atlantic.

The system has a 30 per cent chance of formation within 48 hours, with that probability increasing to 70 per cent through seven days.

The NHC is also monitoring a separate tropical wave located about 600 miles east of the Windward Islands.

The disturbance is producing disorganised showers and thunderstorms, but significant development is not expected as the system encounters a large area of dry air while approaching the Lesser Antilles.

Jamaica

Principal Director of the Met Service, Evan Thompson says the tropical disturbance is not considered a threat to Jamaica, “and very little to the Caribbean because what is expected is that it will continue moving westward but with a drift to the north.”

That movement should keep the center of the system outside of the Caribbean as it continues to move, Thompson told Radio Jamaica News, adding that it should remain over the Atlantic Ocean and continue north of the Caribbean region in the next few days. 

Nevertheless, he said the Jamaican met service will continue to monitor it, “to see what kind of impact could, occur over the Caribbean at all. But the most likely area that could be impacted in any way would be the northeastern Caribbean, parts of the Lesser Antilles, and that would not be a direct impact from the center of the system either. It would be probably some of the bands extending to the center of the system as it develops.”