Tropical Storm Bert inches towards Lesser Antilles

MIAMI, Jun 21, CMC -With Tropical Storm Bret inching closer to the Lesser Antilles, a United States Air Force Hurricane Hunter aircraft is scheduled to investigate the storm later this afternoon.

The St Lucian government has issued a Tropical Storm Warning for the island, while a Tropical Storm Watch is in effect for Barbados, Dominica and Martinique.

The Miami-based National Hurricane Centre (NHC) said that Bret is packing maximum sustained winds of 60 miles per hour (mph) and was located 470 miles east of Barbados as of Wednesday morning. 

“Interests elsewhere in the Lesser Antilles should monitor the progress of Bret. Additional watches or warnings will likely be required for these islands today,” the NHC said, adding that Bret is moving toward the west near 14 mph.

It said this general motion with an increase in forward speed is expected during the next several days.

“On the forecast track, the centre of Bret is expected to approach the Lesser Antilles on Thursday, move across the Lesser Antilles late Thursday and Thursday night, and then move westward across the eastern and central Caribbean Sea Friday and Saturday.

The NHC is also reporting a rainfall amount of three to six inches with a maximum amount of 10 inches being possible across portions of the Lesser Antilles through to Saturday.

“The heavy rainfall could lead to flash flooding, especially across areas of higher terrain. Urban flooding is also possible,” the NHC said, adding that swells generated by Bret are expected to begin affecting portions of the Lesser Antilles on Thursday,” it added.

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