On Wednesday night, Potential Tropical Cyclone #5 was upgraded to Tropical Depression #5.
At 11 p.m., Tropical Depression #5 was located near latitude 9.6N, longitude 46.3W or about 930 miles or 1 495 kilometres east of Barbados.
Recent satellite data indicated the centre was further west than previously initialised and a closed circulation had formed at the surface. As a result, the tropical storm watch for Barbados was upgraded to a tropical storm warning.
A tropical storm warning is issued when sustained winds of 34 to 63 knots (39– 73mph or 63– 118kmh) associated with a tropical storm or hurricane are forecast to affect Barbados within 36 hours, in this case, the very early hours of Friday morning.
The system has maximum sustained winds of 35mph or 55kmh. It is moving west northwest at 23mph or 37kmh. This motion is expected to continue with an increase in forward speed over the next couple days.
Rainfall accumulations of 6 to 8 inches are forecast across Barbados on Friday and watches or warnings for flash-flooding may be issued from Thursday evening.
A marine advisory is also in effect for the island. (PR/SAT)
