8th September 2010 – At 11:00AM the center of Tropical Storm Igor was located near Latitude 13.7 North/Longitude 23.5 West, or about 95 miles southeast of the Cape Verde Islands. Igor is moving toward the west near 8mph. Maximum sustained winds are near 40mph. Igor is expected to move in a general westerly motion for the next couple of days, making a gradual west-northwest turn by the weekend. The forward speed is expected to increase to about 15 mph tomorrow. This track has Igor about 1020 miles east of the northern Lesser Antilles by next Monday morning.
While the long-range forecast indicates Igor will stay north of the Caribbean Sea, it is too early to predict the track with any certainty. Experts predict that on the forecast track Igor would take at least 7 or 8 days to impact the northeast Caribbean.
Upper-level wind shear is affecting Igor today, which will limit strengthening. The shear is expected to decrease tomorrow, allowing Igor to become a hurricane on Saturday. Conditions will be favorable for additional strengthening and forecasters think Igor cold be a category 2 or 3 hurricane by early next week.
Residents are urged not to become relaxed, but to remain in a state of high alert. We are now in the peak of the 2010 Hurricane Season, and any preparedness issues not addressed earlier should be taken care of as soon as possible. Further advisories and information on developing systems in the Atlantic can be found on the Department of Disaster Management’s website at www.bviddm.com.
