MIAMI, Fla.–Whether or not Tropical Storm Erika will make it Mississippi way is still very much as up in the air the clouds that surround her center. Forecasters at the National Hurricane Center have the storm on a path that would likely take her east of Florida, but that could change.
“We want people to understand that our errors at four days are on the order of about 200 miles,” said Stacy Stewart, hurricane specialist at the Center. He means the storm’s path as it relates to the U.S. mainland, will become clearer as it gets closer. “That means the storm could be well to the east of the Bahamas, or be to the west of Florida in the southeastern Gulf of Mexico.”
STACY STEWART INTERVIEW
Erika was expected to be near the Bahamas by about Sunday.
“We don’t want folks to discount this storm simply because we’re officially forecasting it to be a tropical storm through about day three or for, when in reality by the time it gets to the Bahamas, if it finds a sweet spot there, these storms can really intensify.”
Right now, the forecast says Erika will likely become a category one hurricane.
“However, our intensity errors at day five are on the order of about 20 to almost 25 mph, so that could easily make a category one hurricane become a strong category two.
News Mississippi watches any storm that has the potential to make it into the Gulf of Mexico and affect Mississippi.
