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Hurricane Colin could threaten Haiti this week
Storm Colin has degenerated into a Remnant LOW UPDATED: Tuesday Aug 3 1522 Haiti Action.net - Port au Prince, Haiti — [Monday morning report] The heavy showers this week in Haiti's capital portends what could be the first deadly hurricane to hit the beleaguered nation this year. The National Hurricane Center (NHC) in Miami, Florida announced at 11 AM EST that the new weather system has developed into Tropical Depression Four when sustained winds pass 39 MPH the system will become COLIN — the third named storm of the 2010 Atlantic Hurricane season. Even though most prediction models show the expected tropical storm curving north of Haiti, the strain sub-tropical ridge to the north and the steering currents should give the fast moving tropical cyclone a more westerly heading soon — and is just as likely to bring the system directly into the Caribbean. The NHC stated that the scattered convection now has a well-defined surface center of circulation and has a 64% chance of becoming Tropical Storm Colin today. The initial intensity is currently set at 35 MPH. The NHC is hedging its bets on the forecast track and is already reminding the watchers that the "average error" could be 300 miles off in a few days. This rare statement probably means that they are still rushing to wake up the snoozing prediction community from a relatively quiet start on what was predicted to be a busy hurricane season. The system could move directly over the NDBC Mid-Atlantic Buoy overnight which could provide a clearer assessment of the actual storm's strength. Currently, the NHC is expecting the storm to increase in forward speed if it stays on a northwest curvature. If that happens, and if the cyclone does not intensify in the next day or so, it could "struggle to maintain a closed surface circulation" with the combined forward speed and the wind shear developing to the north. A more westerly direction would keep Storm COLIN over warmer waters and within environmental conditions favorable to further development of this storm. The next 72 hours should have civil defense agencies in Haiti closely watching the progress of this storm. RAW View the latest observations near Atlantic TROPICAL STORM COLIN Share this story with your networks BOOKMARK the Haiti Action.net Tropical Cyclone Page for latest updates during this hurricane season. HaitiAction.net will host this page with many Tropical Cyclone resources so you can find the latest information when you are searching for current updates. Contact us: info@haitiaction.org
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