TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — Forecasters are watching three systems in the tropics on Thursday, Lisa, which weakened into a depression, Martin, which is still a hurricane, along with a disturbance in the Atlantic.
Hurricane Martin
At 11 a.m. ET Thursday, Hurricane Martin was about 765 miles northwest of The Azores with maximum sustained winds of 85 mph. It was moving northeast at 48 mph. It had hurricane-force winds extending outward up to 70 miles from its center, and tropical-storm-force winds extending outward up to 520 miles.
Forecasters predict Martin will become a powerful post-tropical cyclone sometime in the next few hours.
It should lose strength over the weekend, but will remain very large and continue to produce strong winds.
Although Martin poses no immediate threat to land, swells generated by the storm will likely spread across part of the North Atlantic basin and affect parts Canada, the Azores, and the Atlantic coast of Europe. The swells will likely cause life-threatening surf and rip current conditions, the center said.
No watches or warnings are in effect at this time.
“Hurricane Martin is a large, strong system, but it’s transitioning into a post-tropical cyclone in the cooler waters of the northern Atlantic. It may eventually head toward Europe early next week,” Storm Team 8 Meteorologist Leigh Spann said.
Tropical Storm Lisa
Lisa was downgraded to a tropical storm after making landfall near Belize City, Belize, then the storm weakened to a depression on Thursday.
At 11 a.m. Thursday, Lisa was centered about 65 miles southeast of miles southeast of Ciudad del Carmen with maximum sustained winds of 35 mph. It was moving west at 10 mph.
Lisa is forecast to move across northern Guatemala, southeastern Mexico and over the Bay of Campeche.
“Additional weakening is forecast, and Lisa is not expected to re-intensify when the center reaches the Bay of Campeche,” the center said.
The system was still expected to dump 4 to 6 inches of rain on parts of Mexico with some areas seeing isolated amounts of 10 inches. The NHC warns the heavy rainfall could bring flash flooding conditions. Parts of Belize, Guatemala and the Yucatan Peninsula will also see heavy rain Thursday.
“Now that Tropical Storm Lisa has made landfall, it will continue to bring the potential for flash flooding in Central America for the next two days,” Spann said. “The system may reemerge into the southern Gulf of Mexico during the weekend.”
Other area to watch
Forecasters are also watching an area of disorganized showers several hundred miles east-northeast of Bermuda.
“Environmental conditions are only marginally favorable for some gradual subtropical or tropical development of this system as it begins to move more westward by this weekend,” the center said. “By early next week, the system is likely to be absorbed by a larger system developing to its southwest.”
Forecaster are giving it a low 10% chance of becoming a tropical depression or storm in the next five days.