Tropical Storm Emily Will Weaken When Making Landfall Today on Hispaniola

Tropical Storm Emily, the fifth named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season, will weaken when it makes landfall today on Hispaniola and passes over the Caribbean island’s mountains, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said.

The storm is about 180 miles (295 kilometers) southeast of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, which along with Haiti comprises Hispaniola, according to an NHC advisory published at 5:00 a.m. in Miami. The storm’s wind speeds are 50 miles per hour and it is moving west-northwest at 14 mph.

A storm warning was in effect for Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, Haiti, the southeast Bahamas and the Turks and Caicos Islands, the center said. It warned that high winds and up to 10 inches (25 centimeters) of rain could trigger life-threatening flash floods and mud slides in mountainous areas. “Large and dangerous waves” would affect these areas, the NHC said.

Emily may strengthen after passing Hispaniola, the NHC said. The storm is projected to move toward the Bahamas and Turks and Caicos Islands tomorrow and Florida on Aug. 5. Storm- force winds extend for as far as 115 miles from the core.

In the Pacific, Hurricane Eugene is expected to weaken later today and presents no threat to land on its current track, the NHC said in a separate advisory at 2 a.m. Los Angeles time. It’s 570 miles south-southwest of Baja California, moving west- northwest at 14 mph with maximum winds of 115 mph. That speed ranks Eugene as a “major” hurricane above Category 3 on the five-step Saffir-Simpson scale.

A low pressure system over the Pacific has a 70 percent chance of a becoming a tropical cyclone in the next two days, the NHC said. It is 225 miles southeast of Acapulco, Mexico, and moving west at a speed of 5 to 10 mph.