The National Hurricane Center continues to track Tropical Storm Philippe on Sunday as well as two Atlantic systems that could develop into the season’s next tropical depressions or storms after Tropical Storm Ophelia doused the mid-Atlantic over the weekend.
As of 5 p.m., the NHC said the center of Philippe was about 1,225 miles west of the Cape Verde Islands moving west at 12 mph with sustained winds of 50 mph. Its tropical-storm-force winds extend out 115 miles.
Tropical storm Philippe cone of uncertainty as of 5 pm on Sunday November 24, 2023. (NHC)
“A continued westward motion is expected over the next few days, with a turn toward the west-northwest and northwest around the middle of the week,” forecasters said. “Slow strengthening is expected during the next few days.”
Its five-day forecast shows it nearing hurricane strength, but remaining in the open Atlantic and no threat to land.
Meanwhile, what had been Tropical Storm Ophelia shifted into a post-tropical cyclone late Saturday but continued to move up the eastern U.S. seaboard over land.
Tropical Storm #Ophelia today via #GOESEast True Color imagery plus Day Cloud Distinction RGB for added insights into the storm structure. Impressive from above via satellite but problematic and possibly dangerous for millions below. pic.twitter.com/CUgXlnaSyc
— UW-Madison CIMSS (@UWCIMSS) September 23, 2023
The NHC gave its last advisory for the system at 5 a.m., saying its remainders still posed a risk of coastal flooding with heavy rain from Washington to New York as it migrates out back into the Atlantic.
At the time, it was located about 85 miles south of Washington moving north-northeast at 25 mph with winds that had died down to 25 mph. It had come ashore early Saturday on Emerald Isle, North Carolina with 70 mph winds and spent the day moving up into the mid-Atlantic states while losing steam.
Before it made landfall, Ophelia proved treacherous enough that five people had to be rescued by the Coast Guard on Friday night from a boat anchored down near the North Carolina coastline.
Videos from social media showed riverfront communities in North Carolina such as New Bern, Belhaven and Washington experiencing significant flooding. The extent of the damage was not immediately clear.
The National Hurricane Center is tracking two systems in the Atlantic Sunday afternoon. (NHC)
In the eastern tropical Atlantic, the NHC has increased the chances for development of what is now a small area of low pressure several hundred miles south of the Cape Verde Islands with disorganized shower activity.
“Environmental conditions are forecast to be conducive for gradual development, and a tropical depression could form around midweek while the system moves westward to west-northwestward across the central tropical Atlantic,” forecasters said,
The NHC gives it a 30% chance to develop in the next two days and 70% chance in the next seven.
If it spins up into a named storm, it could become Tropical Storm Rina, and would be the 17th named storm of the season.
The NHC began tracking another system of disorganized showers and thunderstorms over the Southeastern Gulf of Mexico on Sunday afternoon.
“Further development, if any, is expected to be slow to occur over the next few days while the system moves slowly westward,” Forecasters said. “By the middle of the week, upper-level winds are forecast to become less conducive for additional development.”
The NHC gives it a 10% chance to develop in the next two days and a 10% chance to form within the next seven.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
2023-09-25 10:04:08
#Hurricane #center #tracks #Tropical #Storm #Philippe #NHC #tracks #Atlantic #system
