Tropical Storm Bret is having some trouble organizing into a more powerful storm and is no longer expected to reach hurricane strength, forecasters at the National Hurricane Center said Tuesday.
“In addition, the new forecast now shows dissipation by day five, but if the global models are correct, that could occur even sooner,” wrote Hurricane Specialist Robbie Berg.
Despite that, forecasters say tropical storm watches may be posted later today or tonight for a portions of the Lesser Antilles islands, the chain that includes Martinique, Guadeloupe, and St. Vincent islands. The official forecast track then has Bret passing well to the south of Puerto Rico and Hispaniola.
Bret appears hindered by wind shear, keeping the circulation from intensifying, Berg said. He noted that some satellite measurements have failed to capture the system’s features.
At 11 a.m., eastern time, the center of Bret was 945 miles east of the Windward Islands, moving at a very fast 21 miles-per-hour to the west. Top sustained winds were put at 40 miles-per-hour, but some strengthening is predicted. .
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Tony Winton is the editor-in-chief of the Key Biscayne Independent and president of Miami Fourth Estate, Inc. He worked previously at The Associated Press for three decades winning multiple Edward R. Murrow awards. He was president of the News Media Guild, a journalism union, for 10 years. Born in Chicago, he is a graduate of Columbia University. His interests are photography and technology, sailing, cooking, and science fiction.