Hurricane Fiona made landfall in the Dominican Republic Monday morning and is battering parts of the island with wind and heavy rain.
Much of Puerto Rico is also continuing to feel the Category 1 storm’s “catastrophic flooding,” according to the National Hurricane Center. The forecast shows Fiona staying away from Florida, though the U.S. East Coast may see ocean swells this week.
What type of hazards is Fiona causing? How strong is it? And where is it going?
Here’s a forecast breakdown:
Where is Hurricane Fiona now? And how strong is it?
Hurricane Fiona was about 15 miles west-southwest of Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic, according to the National Hurricane Center’s advisory at 5 a.m. Monday.
The Category 1 hurricane has maximum sustained winds near 90 mph with higher gusts. It’s forecast to get stronger over the next few days once it emerges over the southwestern Atlantic, and is expected to be a Category 3 hurricane by Wednesday.
Its hurricane-force winds extend up to 30 miles from the center, with tropical storm-force winds extending up to 150 miles, according to the hurricane center.
Where is Fiona going?
Fiona is moving toward the northwest near 8 mph, with the storm’s center forecast to move over the eastern portion of of the Dominican Republic Monday morning.
Forecasters expect Fiona will move away from land and into the southwestern Atlantic sometime Monday afternoon. Once Fiona is away from land, the system is expected to turn north-northwest and then north through midweek, according to the hurricane center.
The forecast shows Fiona as a Category 2 hurricane when it passes near or to the east of the Turks and Caicos on Tuesday, bringing stormy conditions to the islands. Tropical storm conditions are expected in the southeastern Bahamas by late Monday or early Tuesday.
Fiona is expected to get stronger in the Atlantic’s open waters, with the forecast showing the hurricane turning into a Category 3 storm later this week.
Hurricane Fiona’s watches/warnings
Here are the hurricane center’s watches and warnings for Fiona:
▪ Hurricane Warning in effect for:Dominican Republic coast from Cabo Caucedo to Cabo Frances Viejo. Turs and Caicos are also under a warning.
▪ Hurricane Watch in effect for:Northern coast of the Dominican Republic from Cabo Frances Viejo west to Puerto Plata.
▪ Tropical Storm Warning in effect for:Puerto Rico, including Vieques and Culebra. The northern coast of the Dominican Republic from Cabo Frances Viejo west to Puerto Plata. The southeastern Bahamas, including the Acklins, Crooked Island, Long Cay, the Inaguas, Mayaguana, and the Ragged Islands.
▪ Tropical Storm Watch in effect for:The southern coast of the Dominican Republic west of Cabo Caucedo to Barahona.
Hurricane Fiona hazards
Hurricane conditions are spreading Monday morning across portions of the Dominican Republic’s coast from Cabo Caucedo to Cabo Frances Viejo, which are under a hurricane warning. The hurricane center expects heavy rains from Fiona’s outer bands will also continue across Puerto Rico into Monday afternoon.
“These rainfall amounts will continue to produce life-threatening and catastrophic flooding along with mudslides and landslides across Puerto Rico. Life-threatening flash and urban flooding is likely for easterly portions of the Dominican Republic,” the hurricane center said.
The northern and eastern Dominican Republic is forecast to see an additional four to six inches of rain, with the eastern section of the island seeing up to a total of 15 inches of rain. The rest of the Dominican Republic and Haiti could see one to four inches of rain.
Turks and Caicos could see four to eight inches of rain, with the southeast Bahamas seeing one to three inches, according to the hurricane center.
Forecasters also expect the Dominican Republic will see storm surge near the coast, with coastal flooding also possible along the southern coast of Puerto Rico.
“Storm surge will raise water levels by as much as 3 to 5 feet above normal tide levels along the immediate coast in areas of onshore winds in the Dominican Republic. Storm surge could raise water levels by as much as 2 to 4 feet above normal tide levels along the immediate coast in areas of onshore winds in the Turks and Caicos Monday night into Tuesday,” the hurricane center reported.
Forecasters expect swells will keep spreading west across the southwest Atlantic toward the central and northwestern Bahamas and the east coast of the United States through midweek. These swells could potentially bring life-threatening surf and rip current conditions.
