Hurricane Forecasters Track 9 Systems as Hawaii Faces 55-Mph Gusts and 15 Inches of Rain
Updated
Updated · USA TODAY · Aug 24
Hurricane Forecasters Track 9 Systems as Hawaii Faces 55-Mph Gusts and 15 Inches of Rain
3 articles · Updated · USA TODAY · Aug 24
Summary
Nine storms and potential storms were under watch early Monday—seven in the Pacific and two in the Atlantic—highlighting a sharp burst of activity at the peak of hurricane season.
Moke weakened to a tropical depression about 300 miles south of Hawaii, but forecasters still warned of tropical-storm-force gusts up to 55 mph and another 3 to 6 inches of rain.
The added rain could push parts of the Big Island to 15 inches total and trigger life-threatening flooding and mudslides in areas already battered by Hurricane Lala.
Elsewhere in the Pacific, Tropical Storm Iselle carried 60-mph winds southwest of Baja California and could briefly reach hurricane strength before weakening, while two nearby disturbances held 70% and 30% development odds.
In the Atlantic, a disturbance 400 miles southeast of Bermuda had a 50% chance of forming, and a wave moving off Africa was also drawing attention despite El Niño wind shear suppressing activity so far.
As Tropical Storm Iselle churns offshore, are the dangerous swells battering Baja California a hidden warning of a much stronger hurricane threat?
With Hawaii's grounds already shattered by Hurricane Lala, could Moke's incoming deluge trigger unprecedented mudslides and catastrophic infrastructure collapse?
Will the boiling waters of the Caribbean eventually overpower the protective shields of El Niño and Saharan dust to unleash massive Atlantic storms?