Atlantic Basin Alive with Activity - Latest Areas of Concern

Even as Hurricane Erin continues to remain a threat for the Caribbean, Bermuda, and the U.S. East Coast, forecasters with the National Hurricane Center (NHC) are already keeping tabs on two other potential areas of tropical weather development in the Atlantic. Here is what is raising the alarm bells now.

New Area of Tropical Interest Near the Leeward Islands

An area of rain showers and thunderstorms has ignited near the Leeward Islands recently. This broad area of development is currently the westernmost area of interest on the radar of the NHC. The forecast models are indicating that the disturbance will continue to track to the west across the Atlantic Ocean, churning between the coast of Africa and the Lesser Antilles in the coming days.

The feature is likely to enter an area that will support further intensification as the week progresses. This is a part of the basin that often serves as the breeding ground for storms that eventually make it to the Caribbean and the U.S. Exceptionally warm ocean waters and low amounts of wind shear will fuel the likely development of this feature. Forecasters believe that it could become a tropical depression by late in the week or into the weekend.

Even if the disturbance does not take on formal tropical characteristics, interests in the Leeward Islands should prepare for inclement conditions beginning on Friday. The Leeward Islands include the U.S. Virgin Islands, the British Virgin Islands, Anguilla, Antigua, and Barbuda. This is the same part of the Atlantic basin that saw the heavy rain from Erin's outer bands last weekend.

It is too early to tell what direction this disturbance could take after unleashing on the Leeward Islands. This will be a feature that the NHC watches closely this week. With the tropical weather season nearing its climatological peak in early to mid-September, you can expect the bulk of activity to fire up in this part of the Atlantic.

The next two storms on the predetermined list of names for the Atlantic season are Fernand and Gabrielle.

Farther to the East in the Atlantic

Moving farther to the east in the Atlantic, another tropical wave has recently moved off the coast of Africa and is churning about a couple of hundred miles to the southeast of the Cabo Verde Islands. Meteorologists have noted that this wave has a small window of time to grow and strengthen. Should it not take hold over the next few days, it will likely encounter more hostile conditions that are less favorable for further development as it moves to the west.

With its location near Africa, it will be days before this feature threatens the Caribbean. Regardless, forecasters will continue to monitor the area of interest and update accordingly.

Caribbean Already Dealing with Blow by Erin

Some parts of the Caribbean have already seen Erin's impacts come and go. Portions of Puerto Rico remained underwater after Erin unleashed across the U.S. territory on Sunday. Although the island did not sustain a direct impact, some rural areas picked up 8 inches of rain. The capital city of San Juan reported nearly 3 inches of rain over the weekend.

According to the Associated Press, almost 150,000 electric customers were without power in Puerto Rico after Erin whipped up the winds. Crews are working hard to gradually restore power. While the worst of the impacts has exited this part of the Caribbean, officials warn that the danger of rip currents will remain a threat for a few more days.

The 2025 Atlantic hurricane season is moving along as forecast earlier in the year. The basin has seen nearly an average amount of named features thus far. Experts still believe that the season may finish with a slightly above-average number of tropical storms and hurricanes. How the basin behaves over the next few weeks will be the largest driver of if these predictions come true. Stay tuned as we continue to update you on all of the latest developments in the Atlantic.

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