Tropical Storm Fiona strengthened overnight prompting a hurricane watch to be put into effect for the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico Saturday morning.
“Fiona could be near hurricane strength when it moves near Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic this weekend,” and it could reach hurricane status itself before reaching the Dominican Republic early Monday, the National Hurricane Center said early Saturday.
At 8:00 a.m. on Saturday, Tropical Storm Fiona was located about 145 miles (230 kilometers) southeast of St. Croix, moving toward the west at 13 mph (28 kph). Tropical-storm-force winds extend outward up to 125 miles from Fiona’s center.
The tropical storm is the most significant tropical system to impact the Caribbean so far this Atlantic hurricane season, which has been unusually quiet. AccuWeather meteorologists have upped the intensity of Fiona at its point of impact in the Dominican Republic, with the storm now expected to be at Category 1 hurricane strength (maximum-sustained winds of 74-95 mph or 119-153 km/h) at landfall, which is projected along the country’s southeastern coast late Sunday.
In addition to the hurricane watches, tropical storm warnings, which were put into effect on Friday, remain in place for Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the Dominican Republic. Forecasters warned that these islands would get slammed with tropical downpours that can pose a significant flood and mudslide risk to lives and property.
This is the first time in more than three years that Puerto Rico has been issued a hurricane watch or warning. The last time was in August 2019, when Hurricane Dorian passed the island as a Category 1 storm.
A few tropical storms have passed the island since then, but Dorian was the last storm at hurricane strength to pass within 50 miles, CNN meteorologists said.
