Forecasters anticipate that Tropical Storm Fiona will approach Puerto Rico on Saturday and pass near the U.S. territory this weekend, with the possibility for dangerously heavy rainfall in isolated locations. The storm entered the eastern Caribbean between Guadeloupe and Montserrat, dumping heavy rains on the northern Leeward Islands.
Forecasters issued a storm watch for Puerto Rico, as residents prepared for possible landslides, severe flooding, and power disruptions.
According to the U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami, Fiona was predicted to cross over or pass near the Dominican Republic on Monday near hurricane status with the same concern of heavy rainfall that could produce flash floods and mudslides.
On September 17, 2022, around 6:30 a.m. EDT, an infrared satellite image depicts Tropical Storm Fiona. NOAA
Meanwhile, Tropical Storm Lester in the eastern Pacific was predicted to make landfall Saturday evening near Acapulco on Mexico’s southwestern coast.
Fiona was expected to produce 5 to 10 inches of rain to eastern and southern Puerto Rico, with isolated locations receiving as much as 16 inches. The Dominican Republic was predicted to receive 4 to 8 inches of precipitation, with up to a foot in some areas. As a result of Fiona’s gusts, life-threatening surf was also predicted, according to forecasters.
The center reported that Fiona, the sixth named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season, had maximum sustained winds of around 60 mph early Saturday morning. It was situated approximately 125 miles west of Guadeloupe and was traveling west at 13 mph.
Lester was predicted to stay a tropical storm in the Pacific until it reached the coast of Mexico, but forecasters warned of potential threats from heavy rainfall.
Early Saturday morning, the storm reached maximum sustained winds of 45 mph. It was situated approximately 135 miles south of Acapulco and traveling 10 mph to the northwest.
From Puerto Escondido to Zihuatanejo, a tropical storm watch was issued. The hurricane center predicted that Lester might produce 3 to 6 inches of precipitation in western Oaxaca, Guerrero, Michoacan, Colima, and Jalisco states, with isolated regions receiving 1 foot.