Tropical Weather

Melissa is now a hurricane and forecast to become a major hurricane in the next 24 hours. The slow movement of this storm will cause flooding to Jamaica before the very highs winds slam the island early this week. Jamaica could be in for 48 hours of hurricane force winds, which is rare. The storm will move quickly into the Atlantic Ocean with no impact on the Gulf Coast.

Tropical Storm Melissa is still spinning in the central Caribbean and is expected to rapidly intensify into a major hurricane over the weekend. The threat for strong winds and heavy rain will be felt across Jamaica, Haiti, the Dominican Republic and Eastern Cuba. It looks like the biggest impacts could come in Jamaica where a direct hit from Melissa is expected early next week on Monday and Tuesday. Over a foot of rain and hurricane force winds are likely as Melissa is expected to slam into Jamaica early next week as a powerful category four hurricane.

Tropical storm Melissa still looks fairly disorganized in the Central Caribbean. But it is forecast to slowly get stronger and blow up into a major hurricane by early next week as it pushes into warmer waters and encounters less shear. Because of its extremely slow movement, it poses a growing threat of heavy rain, flash flooding, and strong winds to Caribbean islands, including Haiti, Jamaica, and Cuba. Rainfall of 10 inches or more is possible in some areas along with hurricane force winds. The forecast track is about as uncertain as it gets, but, in general, the area from Jamaica to Haiti will have the biggest risk.

The FOX 26 Weather Team is continuing to monitor the latest with Tropical Storm Melissa. Forecasts are predicting the named storm will become a major hurricane.

FOX 26 Meteorologist Remeisha Shade has the latest as Tropical Storm Melissa has formed.

Recent satellite wind data indicate the tropical wave (Invest 98L) located over the eastern Caribbean Sea still lacks a closed circulation, but continues to produce a concentrated area of showers and thunderstorms. Compared to yesterday, surface observations suggest the circulation is gradually becoming better defined, and environmental conditions are forecast to become a little more conducive for development as the system slows its forward motion. A tropical depression or storm is now likely to form over the next day or two as it moves into the central Caribbean Sea.