KABC, CNN

By Paradise Afshar and Cindy Von Quednow, CNN

(CNN) — Raging wildfires in California and Nevada have led to mandatory evacuations of thousands of homes, as forecasters warn of record heat in the West for the next few days. There are 14 active wildfires currently burning across California – with one so intense, it’s created its own weather pattern. Here’s the latest:

• California’s Line Fire explodes in size: The wildfire has consumed 17,459 acres as of Sunday after igniting at the base of the San Bernardino Mountains on Thursday. The blaze has more than quadrupled in size since Saturday morning. Authorities urged residents in several areas to flee as the massive blaze shot bright red flames and thick, billowing plumes of smoke into the sky. More than 600 fire personnel are battling the wildfire, which was 0% contained as of Sunday morning, according to Cal Fire. The blaze has injured three people, though authorities have not released any details about the extent of injuries.

Thunderstorm winds are causing “very erratic behavior” on the blaze and vegetation is “critically dry,” the agency said Sunday. Smoke continues to be an issue for firefighters and residents, and afternoon thunderstorms have the potential to cause new ignitions.

“Hot and dry conditions mixed with thunderstorms are expected to challenge firefighters for the next few days,” Cal Fire said.

The fire prompted a smoke advisory to be issued by the South Coast Air Quality Management District. As a result, the Rancho Cucamonga Fire District recommended residents stay indoors if possible, keep windows and doors closed and reduce outdoor activities.

A flash flood warning went into effect in Riverside and San Bernardino counties until Sunday evening, according to the National Weather Service office in San Diego.

The storms producing localized, heavy rainfall are occurring near the Line Fire. The warning means flash flooding is ongoing or expected and could cause considerable damage. Landslides are possible, especially in recently burn-scarred areas.

Doppler radar-indicated thunderstorms are producing heavy rain across the warned area at a rate of 1 to 2 inches per hour.

• Line Fire creates its own weather: As it burns through acres of land, it’s creating its own weather in the form of pyrocumulus clouds. The clouds can create erratic winds that push the fire outward, spreading it farther and challenging firefighters. If it’s hot enough, the clouds can produce lightning and rain, called pyrocumulonimbus. They can reach heights of 50,000 feet and generate their own systems of thunderstorms.

• Thousands evacuated in California mountain communities: As the flames move dangerously close, the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department announced mandatory evacuation orders for about 4,800 homes in the Running Springs and Arrowbear Lake areas. Hundreds more have been evacuated in the cities of Highland, Forest Falls, Mountain Home Village and Angelus Oaks. “The Line Fire is very active and spreading in receptive fuels,” Cal Fire said. “There are currently 35,405 structures threatened, including single and multifamily homes, commercial buildings, and other minor structures.”

Firefighters have been successful in protecting homes from flames, Cal Fire Battalion Chief Brent Pascua told CNN on Sunday.

“Firefighters have been successful so far, even with the unpredictability of this fire, and we tend to keep it that way, we’re ready to stand and fight,” Pascua told CNN’s Fredricka Whitfield.

He added because of the unpredictability of the fire, all areas of the blaze are of concern for firefighters. “We have to make sure we have crews on all sides of the fire ready to stand their ground,” Pascua said.

• Bridge Fire in Angeles National Forest: A fire has rapidly grown to 200 acres inside the Angeles National Forest, just north of the Los Angeles metro area. Several roads in the park have been closed, forest officials said in a Facebook post.

• Boyles Fire near Clearlake, California: Multiple structures are burning near Clearlake, California, about 100 miles west of Sacramento. At least 30 structures are involved and about 4,000 residents have been displaced by the growing 76-acre fire, which Cal Fire said is 10% contained.

• Emergency declared in California: Gov. Gavin Newsom has proclaimed a state of emergency in San Bernardino County due to the Line Fire. He has obtained a grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to ensure the availability of vital fire resources, he said in a statement.

• Emergency declared in Nevada: On Sunday, Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo declared a state of emergency due to the blaze, he announced on X.

• Nevada wildfire destroys structures: The Davis Fire, a dangerous, wind-driven blaze south of Reno, has burned about 6,500 acres, damaged or destroyed 14 structures and remains 0% contained as of late Sunday evening. Truckee Meadows Fire and Rescue reported “Heavy aerial resources and multiple agencies working to stop this wind-driven wildfire.”

The fire has caused the evacuation of about 14,000 people in affected areas of Washoe County, and more than 6,000 residents are without power, the emergency declaration detailed.

“Gusty winds are forecasted throughout the week,” an update from the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest said, adding customers who are currently without power should be prepared for prolonged outages and those who still have power “should be prepared for potential additional de-energizations due to the dynamic nature of the fire.”

NV Energy said it cut power “to prevent further ignitions and protect first responders.” It also asked those who still have power and are near the fire to prepare for potential outages.

“Power has been restored to 12,500 customers, but 6,300 remain without power tonight into September 9th,” NV Energy said in a social media statement.

• Sweltering heat will add to the region’s misery: Excessive heat warnings and advisories are in effect for southern California, the Desert Southwest and the northern Great Basin. Temperatures in Southern California range from 95 to 105 degrees – about 10 to 20 degrees above average for the region. An air quality alert has also been issued “due to heat wave and elevated fine particle pollution levels due to wildfire smoke,” according to the National Weather Service.

Residents on edge as massive flames approach

The Line Fire has grown more than 14 times in size in just over 30 hours, from about 1,180 acres at 5 p.m. PT Friday to over 17,200 acres Saturday night.

As the wildfire tears through the San Bernardino County mountains, some residents have tried to stop the blaze from reaching their homes.

Highland resident Brian Gano told CNN affiliate KCAL News he was trying to hose down the flames with his wife and son.

“The flames were right up on us because the wind shifted,” said Gano. “I got a high-pressure line in my backyard.”

Another resident, Diya Hirpara, said she’s been stocking up on groceries in case she needs to evacuate.

“It was pretty scary,” Hirpara said. “We’re just kind of on the edge, just waiting.”

Larissa Gonzalez said she was standing on Highway 18 in Lake Arrowhead on Saturday when she captured a storm rolling through the Line Fire. “There was a lot of thunder and lightning coming out of that flare-up; the wind was picking up and driving the fire over that ridge,” Gonzalez told CNN. She watched the storm for about an hour while parked in front of the Rim of the World High School to see what direction it was heading and to determine if she needed to start getting ready to evacuate.

Visitors to the area were also affected by the smoke and flames.

Mark Weidhase told CNN on Sunday he and his girlfriend decided to head to the mountains to escape the heat while visiting from Canada. As they were leaving Big Bear and heading through Running Springs on Saturday, they found themselves near the Line Fire. Weidhase said they pulled off Highway 330 to get a good look at the massive wildfire after noticing it was closed and receiving notice of an evacuation order. “I love the mountains, but not when they’re on fire,” he said.

Multiple agencies, including Cal Fire, San Bernardino County Fire and the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Office, are working together to manage the fire. The American Red Cross has set up an evacuation shelter at a local church for residents seeking refuge from the fire.

California is seeing an active fire season. Wildfires have scorched over 838,000 acres throughout the state so far this year, compared to 255,144 acres by this time last year, according to Cal Fire.

Adding to the chaos, a pair of earthquakes struck Saturday near Ontario, California, within a half-hour of each other, jolting the already rattled region.

The first earthquake was recorded at 3.5 magnitude at 10 a.m. local time, and the next was recorded at 3.9 magnitude, according to data from US Geological Survey. It was felt by residents living as far away as Los Angeles.

CNN’s Faith Karimi, Ashley R. Williams, Artemis Moshtaghian, Sarah Dewberry and Eric Zerkel contributed to this report.

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(CNN) — Potential Tropical Cyclone Six has formed over the warm waters of the southern Gulf of Mexico with over two months left of 2024’s Atlantic hurricane season, the National Hurricane Center said Sunday.

The storm that formed in the Gulf’s Bay of Campeche was located about 320 miles south of Brownsville, Texas late Sunday with maximum sustained winds of 50 mph, according to the hurricane center’s 11 p.m.ET update.

“The system is moving toward the northwest near 5 mph and a slow northwestward motion followed by a turn more northward is expected over the next day or two,” the hurricane center said.

“On the forecast track, the disturbance is expected to move just offshore ofthe northern Gulf Coast of Mexico throughTuesday, and approach the Upper Texas and Louisiana coastline on Wednesday,” forecasters added.

Mexico’s government issued a tropical storm watch from Barra del Tordo northward to the mouth of the Rio Grande ahead of potential impacts.

The National Weather Service in the United States added a Tropical Storm watch from the mouth of the Rio Grande to Port Mansfiled, about 60 miles up the coast.

The hurricane center said watches could also be issued for more areas of southern Texas and Louisiana Monday.

The system is expected to become a tropical storm on Monday with more significant intensification expected on Tuesday as a result of very warm Gulf waters. It is forecast to strengthen to hurricane status before it reaches the Texas-Louisiana Gulf Coast, according to the hurricane center.

The next named storm will be called Francine.

An elongated area of low pressure over the southwestern Gulf of Mexico continued producing a large area of showers and thunderstorms on Sunday, the hurricane center said.

The storm’s title, Potential Tropical Cyclone Six, is a designation used by the hurricane center to denote a storm that has not yet formed but is expected to soon and will bring impacts within the 48-hour window requiring alerts to be issued.

The storm comes during an already unusually active Atlantic hurricane season which has so far produced five named storms by mid-August – three of which became hurricanes. It also comes days before the statistical peak of the Atlantic hurricane season on September 10.

Data from Colorado State University researchers show about 68% of all Atlantic tropical activity typically occurs after September 1. The latest activity in the Gulf follows a rare quiet period in the Atlantic, with no named storms forming since Ernesto in mid-August.

The warm waters of the southern Gulf, where temperatures are in the low 90s Fahrenheit and around 5 degrees above average, contributed to the storm’s early strengthening over the weekend.

An Air Force Reserve hurricane hunter plane investigated the system Sunday afternoon, still unorganized and not yet reaping the benefits of those warm water fuels.

Weak steering conditions in the upper atmosphere could cause erratic movements and it’s too early to determine the system’s potential strength or where it may make landfall.

However, “interests along the Gulf coast of Mexico, upper Texas, and Louisiana coasts should closely monitor the progress of this system,” the hurricane center said.

Portions of the northwestern Gulf Coast could potentially see strong winds, dangerous storm surge and flooding from heavy rainfall starting as early as Tuesday.

Tropical downpours are expected to bring 4 to 8 inches of rain, with up to 12 inches possible from the coast of far northeast Mexico northward along portions of the Texas coast and into Louisiana through Thursday. This rainfall would lead to the risk of flash and urban flooding.

Storm surge and rough surf could cause minor coastal flooding along the Mexican coastline. Tropical storm conditions are possible within the watch area along the northern coast of Mexico beginning Tuesday.

The storm could affect many of the same areas of Texas hit hard in July by Hurricane Beryl, which made landfall southwest of Houston as a Category 1 and brought extensive flooding and wind damage, causing significant power losses in and around Houston.

For reference, the last season to have two named storms make landfall in Texas was 2020, when Category 1 Hurricane Hanna struck near Brownsville and Tropical Storm Beta struck Port Lavaca.

If the storm hits the Texas coastline as a hurricane, it would be the first double punch in 16 years. The last time two hurricanes struck Texas in the same year was 2008 with Dolly in Corpus Christi and Ike in Galveston and Houston.

The last named storm to directly hit Louisiana was Category 4 Hurricane Ida in 2021.

Forecasters monitor 2 other systems in Atlantic

The National Hurricane Center is also monitoring two other systems in the eastern Atlantic.

Showers and thunderstorms associated with an elongated area of low pressure over the central tropical Atlantic continue to show some signs of organization.

Environmental conditions appear favorable for this system to develop further. “A tropical depression could form while the system meanders over the central tropical Atlantic through Monday and then begins to move generally westward through the rest of the week,” the hurricane center said, putting chances of formation over the next seven days at 70%.

Further east, low pressure several hundred miles southwest of the Cabo Verde Islands is producing a broad area of disorganized showers and thunderstorms.

This system is expected to move very little during the next couple of days until it potentially interacts with a tropical wave forecast to move off the west coast of Africa on Monday.

A tropical depression could form by the middle or latter part of the week while the system begins moving slowly northwestward. The hurricane center said this system has a 50% chance of forming.

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(CNN) — Raging wildfires in California and Nevada have led to mandatory evacuations of thousands of homes, as forecasters warn of record heat in the West for the next few days. There are 14 active wildfires currently burning across California – with one so intense, it’s created its own weather pattern. Here’s the latest:

• California’s Line Fire explodes in size: The wildfire has consumed 17,459 acres as of Sunday after igniting at the base of the San Bernardino Mountains on Thursday. The blaze has more than quadrupled in size since Saturday morning. Authorities urged residents in several areas to flee as the massive blaze shot bright red flames and thick, billowing plumes of smoke into the sky. More than 600 fire personnel are battling the wildfire, which was 0% contained as of Sunday morning, according to Cal Fire. The blaze has injured three people, though authorities have not released any details about the extent of injuries.

Thunderstorm winds are causing “very erratic behavior” on the blaze and vegetation is “critically dry,” the agency said Sunday. Smoke continues to be an issue for firefighters and residents, and afternoon thunderstorms have the potential to cause new ignitions.

“Hot and dry conditions mixed with thunderstorms are expected to challenge firefighters for the next few days,” Cal Fire said.

The fire prompted a smoke advisory to be issued by the South Coast Air Quality Management District. As a result, the Rancho Cucamonga Fire District recommended residents stay indoors if possible, keep windows and doors closed and reduce outdoor activities.

A flash flood warning went into effect in Riverside and San Bernardino counties until Sunday evening, according to the National Weather Service office in San Diego.

The storms producing localized, heavy rainfall are occurring near the Line Fire. The warning means flash flooding is ongoing or expected and could cause considerable damage. Landslides are possible, especially in recently burn-scarred areas.

Doppler radar-indicated thunderstorms are producing heavy rain across the warned area at a rate of 1 to 2 inches per hour.

• Line Fire creates its own weather: As it burns through acres of land, it’s creating its own weather in the form of pyrocumulus clouds. The clouds can create erratic winds that push the fire outward, spreading it farther and challenging firefighters. If it’s hot enough, the clouds can produce lightning and rain, called pyrocumulonimbus. They can reach heights of 50,000 feet and generate their own systems of thunderstorms.

• Thousands evacuated in California mountain communities: As the flames move dangerously close, the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department announced mandatory evacuation orders for about 4,800 homes in the Running Springs and Arrowbear Lake areas. Hundreds more have been evacuated in the cities of Highland, Forest Falls, Mountain Home Village and Angelus Oaks. “The Line Fire is very active and spreading in receptive fuels,” Cal Fire said. “There are currently 35,405 structures threatened, including single and multifamily homes, commercial buildings, and other minor structures.”

Firefighters have been successful in protecting homes from flames, Cal Fire Battalion Chief Brent Pascua told CNN on Sunday.

“Firefighters have been successful so far, even with the unpredictability of this fire, and we tend to keep it that way, we’re ready to stand and fight,” Pascua told CNN’s Fredricka Whitfield.

He added because of the unpredictability of the fire, all areas of the blaze are of concern for firefighters. “We have to make sure we have crews on all sides of the fire ready to stand their ground,” Pascua said.

• Bridge Fire in Angeles National Forest: A fire has rapidly grown to 200 acres inside the Angeles National Forest, just north of the Los Angeles metro area. Several roads in the park have been closed, forest officials said in a Facebook post.

• Boyles Fire near Clearlake, California: Multiple structures are burning near Clearlake, California, about 100 miles west of Sacramento. At least 30 structures are involved and about 4,000 residents have been displaced by the growing 76-acre fire, which Cal Fire said is 10% contained.

• Emergency declared in California: Gov. Gavin Newsom has proclaimed a state of emergency in San Bernardino County due to the Line Fire. He has obtained a grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to ensure the availability of vital fire resources, he said in a statement.

• Emergency declared in Nevada: On Sunday, Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo declared a state of emergency due to the blaze, he announced on X.

• Nevada wildfire destroys structures: The Davis Fire, a dangerous, wind-driven blaze south of Reno, has burned about 6,500 acres, damaged or destroyed 14 structures and remains 0% contained as of late Sunday evening. Truckee Meadows Fire and Rescue reported “Heavy aerial resources and multiple agencies working to stop this wind-driven wildfire.”

The fire has caused the evacuation of about 14,000 people in affected areas of Washoe County, and more than 6,000 residents are without power, the emergency declaration detailed.

“Gusty winds are forecasted throughout the week,” an update from the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest said, adding customers who are currently without power should be prepared for prolonged outages and those who still have power “should be prepared for potential additional de-energizations due to the dynamic nature of the fire.”

NV Energy said it cut power “to prevent further ignitions and protect first responders.” It also asked those who still have power and are near the fire to prepare for potential outages.

“Power has been restored to 12,500 customers, but 6,300 remain without power tonight into September 9th,” NV Energy said in a social media statement.

• Sweltering heat will add to the region’s misery: Excessive heat warnings and advisories are in effect for southern California, the Desert Southwest and the northern Great Basin. Temperatures in Southern California range from 95 to 105 degrees – about 10 to 20 degrees above average for the region. An air quality alert has also been issued “due to heat wave and elevated fine particle pollution levels due to wildfire smoke,” according to the National Weather Service.

Residents on edge as massive flames approach

The Line Fire has grown more than 14 times in size in just over 30 hours, from about 1,180 acres at 5 p.m. PT Friday to over 17,200 acres Saturday night.

As the wildfire tears through the San Bernardino County mountains, some residents have tried to stop the blaze from reaching their homes.

Highland resident Brian Gano told CNN affiliate KCAL News he was trying to hose down the flames with his wife and son.

“The flames were right up on us because the wind shifted,” said Gano. “I got a high-pressure line in my backyard.”

Another resident, Diya Hirpara, said she’s been stocking up on groceries in case she needs to evacuate.

“It was pretty scary,” Hirpara said. “We’re just kind of on the edge, just waiting.”

Larissa Gonzalez said she was standing on Highway 18 in Lake Arrowhead on Saturday when she captured a storm rolling through the Line Fire. “There was a lot of thunder and lightning coming out of that flare-up; the wind was picking up and driving the fire over that ridge,” Gonzalez told CNN. She watched the storm for about an hour while parked in front of the Rim of the World High School to see what direction it was heading and to determine if she needed to start getting ready to evacuate.

Visitors to the area were also affected by the smoke and flames.

Mark Weidhase told CNN on Sunday he and his girlfriend decided to head to the mountains to escape the heat while visiting from Canada. As they were leaving Big Bear and heading through Running Springs on Saturday, they found themselves near the Line Fire. Weidhase said they pulled off Highway 330 to get a good look at the massive wildfire after noticing it was closed and receiving notice of an evacuation order. “I love the mountains, but not when they’re on fire,” he said.

Multiple agencies, including Cal Fire, San Bernardino County Fire and the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Office, are working together to manage the fire. The American Red Cross has set up an evacuation shelter at a local church for residents seeking refuge from the fire.

California is seeing an active fire season. Wildfires have scorched over 838,000 acres throughout the state so far this year, compared to 255,144 acres by this time last year, according to Cal Fire.

Adding to the chaos, a pair of earthquakes struck Saturday near Ontario, California, within a half-hour of each other, jolting the already rattled region.

The first earthquake was recorded at 3.5 magnitude at 10 a.m. local time, and the next was recorded at 3.9 magnitude, according to data from US Geological Survey. It was felt by residents living as far away as Los Angeles.

CNN’s Faith Karimi, Ashley R. Williams, Artemis Moshtaghian, Sarah Dewberry and Eric Zerkel contributed to this report.

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EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) -- If you thought summers have been getting hotter, you're not wrong. A study conducted by Climate Central found 230 of the 241 cities they analyzed had an average 2.5°F increase over the past few decades.

The study started in the 1970s. It looked at cities across the United States during the months of June, July and August.

The study compile the following list of the top five fastest-warming cities:

• Reno, Nevada,
• Boise, Idaho
• El Paso, Texas
• Las Vegas, Nevada
• Salt Lake City, Utah

Greg Lundeen, meteorologist with the National Weather Service, says El Paso's low temperatures are increasing and that is contributing to the high temperatures during the day. So far this year El Paso has had 54 triple digit days.

Lundeen says to study the effects and what causes the increase takes time, not just weeks, days, months, years, decades and even centuries. Lundeen suggest the community get educated about climate change and the effects of heat.

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(CNN) — It’s early September – what should be the busiest stretch of hurricane season. Forecasters predicted this one was going to be bad: storm after storm, the most bullish forecasts on record.

Instead, the Atlantic Ocean is enveloped in a rare and strange calm that has flummoxed forecasters and reset their expectations. And the whole thing could be a glimpse at what’s to come as the planet gets hotter.

Despite ideal conditions that fueled pre-season predictions of upwards of 20 named storms, the immediate prospects for one are bleak, and none have formed in the Atlantic since Ernesto in mid-August – a streak unmatched in 56 years.

“If you had told me a month ago that nothing would (develop) after Ernesto I wouldn’t have believed you,” Phil Klotzbach, a hurricane expert and research scientist at Colorado State University, said. “It’s really surprising.”

The strange season has been influenced by extreme atmospheric conditions that are a byproduct of climate change driven by fossil fuel pollution, experts said. And it could also be a “lens” into the more volatile storm behavior of the future, Matthew Rosencrans, lead hurricane season forecaster with NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center, said.

Scientists have long said a warming world will ultimately result in fewer but stronger storms something this season has born the fruit of.

Hurricane forecasters, including Klotzbach, were predicting the calendar flip from August to September would revive the season. Many widely used forecast models signaled the same thing. It didn’t pan out.

The conditions ideal for hurricane development – warm ocean water, minimal storm-disrupting upper-level winds and plenty of moist air – are there, but the storms aren’t happening. Lesser-understood atmospheric factors have gotten in the way, Klotzbach said, and they have ties to global warming.

Take that extremely warm ocean water: The Atlantic has been near-record warm since before the season began. It fueled record-breaking Category 5 Hurricane Beryl, a hurricane with such immense strength so early in the season that it was considered a potential harbinger of a busy season to come.

But warm water can’t intensify storms if they never make it there in the first place.

Almost all hurricanes originate from stormy weather coming off the coast of Central Africa. Since about mid-summer, these hurricane seeds have been pushed farther north than usual – even into one of the driest areas on Earth – the Sahara Desert. They have also exited Africa much farther north than normal and have been stunted as a result. Dry, dusty air and cooler ocean temperatures here, off the continent’s northwest coast, have combined to choke off storms.

The northward shift could be tied to the interaction between extremely warm water in the tropical Atlantic and a small patch of abnormally cool water – a burgeoning Atlantic Niña – near the equator, according to Klotzbach and his group at CSU.

The African monsoon is supercharged with a ton of moisture, something that can actually delay tropical storm development, a study published in June in the Journal of Advances in Modeling Earth Systems found. It turns out there’s a Goldilocks zone for hurricanes – dry conditions will starve thunderstorms of the fuel they need, but too much can make them so messy that they can’t organize into a cyclone. The moisture needs to be just right.

“For the first time, we’re seeing that this is actually the case,” Núñez Ocasio said. “We’re seeing it right now in the Atlantic hurricane season.”

The scenario could happen more frequently as the world continues to warm because the atmosphere will hold onto more moisture. Further research is needed to definitively determine the change over time, Núñez Ocasio cautioned.

Very warm conditions tied to the climate crisis both at Earth’s surface and higher up in the atmosphere are also limiting the available chaotic energy tropical systems need to form.

Along with warming at the surface, even the highest levels of the troposphere – the layer of Earth where all life and most weather happens – are warming over time, a 2023 study published in the journal Nature found. This trend could potentially keep storminess in the Atlantic much more subdued during the hottest part of the year, similar to what unfolded this year.

The weather weirdness means there are no immediate legitimate storm prospects. If no storms develop by the typical peak of hurricane season on September 10, it would mark a peak-of-season quiet streak unmatched in nearly 100 years, according to hurricane expert Michael Lowry.

Still, experts warn the season isn’t down for the count and could show signs of life soon.

More than 40% of all tropical activity in a typical season occurs after September 10, so there’s plenty of precedent for storms to reinvigorate the Atlantic in the following months.

Klotzbach believes the season could reawaken by the second half of September, when these limiting factors could start to lessen.

And as the season drags on, the area where storms start to form later in hurricane season creeps closer to the Caribbean and the US coastline, including in the Gulf of Mexico which is record-warm. Plus, La Niña is expected to build throughout the fall and could give a boost to activity in October and November.

Anyone in areas at risk for tropical impacts shouldn’t let their guard down because of the recent lull in activity.

Storms “will come back,” Klotzbach cautioned. “I still don’t see this season ending well.”

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EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) -- The University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) has secured a spot on Forbes' Top 500 Colleges list for 2024.

Among Texas’s 80 four-year institutions, UTEP is one of only 15 recognized, joining the ranks of prestigious universities like UT Austin and Rice.

UTEP stands out for graduating students with minimal debt, ranking first in Texas and 15th nationwide in this category.

Forbes reports that UTEP graduates earn a median salary of $106,000 within a decade of graduation, with an average debt of just $4,735—well below the national average of $28,244.

President Heather Wilson and Vice President Amanda Vasquez highlight UTEP’s dedication to providing affordable, high-quality education, reflecting the university’s commitment to reducing financial barriers and enhancing student success.

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By Mary Gilbert, CNN Meteorologist

(CNN) — A widespread area of the eastern United States will get a taste of early fall weather for Labor Day weekend after July-like heat baked tens of millions of people this week.

A potent cold front will sweep across the area and usher in cooler air from Canada this weekend into early next week. This will keep the north-central and northeast US strapped into a temperature roller coaster while the South could get its first notable break from intense summer heat in many weeks.

But summer is bleeding into fall as the world warms due to fossil fuel pollution, so the cooldown isn’t expected to last more than a handful of days before temperatures creep back up again. The flip from warm to cool to warm is a trend that could continue through much of fall, according to the latest seasonal forecasts.

The north-central US will be the first area to relish in the front’s relief when it plunges into the country late Saturday. Cooler air will spread farther south and east from there Sunday, and by the evening, fall-like weather will have reached most of the Midwest.

Chicago will see a late-September-like high in the low 70s for Labor Day Monday. It’ll be a drastic change from the heat in the city earlier this week. On Tuesday, Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport soared to a record-breaking 99 degrees for the date, which was the highest temperature recorded at the site all summer.

Next week’s cooldown won’t be the city’s first short-lived taste of fall this month. A lot of the northern US has been on a temperature roller coaster in the second half of August, flowing from sizzling summer heat to a tease of fall and back again.

The cold front will push through the Northeast on Monday, but the region will have already experienced a taste of fall ahead of the front. Cooler air first reappeared in parts of the Northeast Thursday after stormy weather rolled through Wednesday.

It felt like mid-September in New York City Thursday with plenty of clouds around and the city only topped out in the mid-70s during the day. Cooler, cloudier weather with daily chances for showers will linger over much of the Northeast through the weekend.

Areas south of the Northeast could have to wait until Tuesday for a few days of heat relief to arrive.

Washington, DC, maxed out at 101 degrees Wednesday, shattering the day’s record and just a few degrees shy of the metro’s hottest August reading. Wet weather on Friday may bring brief heat relief, but the cool will be short-lived until after the cold front goes through the area early next week.

The southern tier of the US has been a literal hot spot all summer, but a cooling trend got underway in parts of the region this week.

Wet, cloudy weather this week brought temperatures along the western Gulf Coast a few degrees below what typical for late August. Persistent storminess will keep high temperatures in Houston and New Orleans in the upper 80s into at least early next week.

While the Gulf Coast has gotten some relief, that same thing can’t be said about inland areas of the South. Tuesday’s front will finally change that.

Atlanta, for example, only had two days so far this summer where high temperatures remained in the low 80s. Tuesday could be the first time since July that the city feels this late-September-like temperature.

These fall temperatures will stick around for much of next week in the South, along with daily chances for stormy weather.

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SANTA FE, New Mexico (KVIA) -- The New Mexico Office of the State Auditor is investigating the Camino Real Regional Utility Authority (CRRUA) for fraud, waste, and abuse.

Residents in Sunland Park and Santa Teresa asked for the investigation, and had the New Mexico Environmental Law Center submit the request on their behalf.

On August 19, 2024, in response to the request, the state auditor told the community members that it had already launched an investigation into "any and all violations of environmental protection laws; consumer protection laws; the New Mexico Open Meetings Act; and waste, fraud, and abuse of state and federal funds"

CRRUA has recently faced controversy over issues with its water, including increased arsenic levels.

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Originally Published: 27 AUG 24 15:48 ET

By John Fritze, CNN

(CNN) — Republican officials in 24 states asked the Supreme Court on Tuesday to halt a Biden administration effort to reduce emissions of the planet-warming gas methane, adding to a series of emergency appeals challenging environmental regulations.

Led by Oklahoma, the states are asking the high court to pause an Environmental Protection Agency rule that went into effect earlier this year and that the agency estimates will slash methane emissions from oil and gas operations by nearly 80% through 2038.

The latest filing is part of a much broader campaign by the groups battling Biden administration environmental regulations, a push that has repeatedly resonated with the Supreme Court’s conservative majority in recent years.

Many of the same states and industry groups have filed other emergency appeals in recent weeks challenging different regulations, including those to curb power plant pollution and mercury emissions.

An appeals court in Washington, DC, previously denied the states’ request to put the new methane regulations on hold.

Methane, the main component of natural gas and a byproduct of fossil fuel drilling, is a powerful source of climate pollution with more than 80 times the warming power of carbon dioxide during its first two decades in the atmosphere.

The states accused the EPA of “thrashing around for tools to address this administration’s concerns about climate change.” They told the Supreme Court that the EPA’s requirement that states design plans within a two-year period would be “impossible.”

Given the agency’s history of regulation, the states said, its “attack” on “the oil and gas industry comes as no surprise.”

The Supreme Court is likely to take several weeks, at least, to consider the request.

A 5-4 majority of the Supreme Court in June upended Biden’s effort to reduce smog and air pollution wafting across state lines in what was known as the “good neighbor” rule. That case also originated on the court’s emergency docket. In recent years, the court has also rolled back or paused other rules limiting power plant emissions and water quality.

CNN’s Ella Nilsen contributed to this report. 

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(CNN) — Fall is a season of transitions: brutally hot summer days give way to crisp fall evenings, green leaves take on colorful hues and fresh summertime flavors are drowned out by the warmth of baking spices.

But while pumpkin spice is already overtaking the country, the familiar fall feel may take much longer to materialize as the warmth of an intensely hot summer in the United States shows signs it could bleed into the new season – a trend as the world warms from fossil fuel pollution.

“The fall season is increasingly being seen as an extension of summer,” said Jennifer Marlon, a climate scientist at the Yale School of the Environment. “It’s warming fast.”

Intense, frequent and long-lasting warmups will likely make this summer the hottest on record for nearly 100 cities in the West, South and East, including Las Vegas, Phoenix and Washington, DC.

Some locations had a brief taste of fall-like weather in the last couple of weeks only to have this summer’s sizzling temperatures reemerge with a vengeance.

Take Philadelphia, for instance. High temperatures in the low to mid-70s made it feel like late-September for a few days last week. But the heat index – how the combination of heat and humidity feels to the body – will hit the triple-digits there on Wednesday.

Tens of millions of people were under heat alerts Wednesday with potentially record-breaking high temperatures possible in the East and widespread highs in the 90s and lows 100s for much of the country.

This temperature rollercoaster could be a theme of the season. Despite continued cool flashes warmth appears poised to stick around in fall for much of the US.

Fall temperatures might not fall much

Fall technically starts in September, but the more consistent cooler temperatures associated with it become more widespread across the country by the second half of the month. The problem is, summerlike heat isn’t going down without a fight, according to the latest forecasts.

The most unusual warmth forecast during the month stretches from the central and southern Rockies southeast through the South and then north up the entire East Coast.

The northern tier of the country from the Pacific Northwest to the Upper Midwest has the greatest chance to remain closer to normal, according to the Climate Prediction Center.

Above-average temperatures will largely continue through October and November, according to the CPC.

The entirety of fall will not feel exactly like summer even with elevated average temperatures. Typical high temperatures drop by around 20 to 25 degrees from mid-July to mid-October for much of the US.

Denver, for example, falls from a normal high near 90 degrees in July to a high in the mid 60s in October.

Hurricanes could lower the thermometer

The East Coast could get somewhat of a reprieve from abnormal warmth this fall if an active hurricane season has anything to say about it.

Despite some quiet periods, the Atlantic hurricane season is expected to pick up again soon. La Niña is expected to build during the fall and could enhance tropical activity in the Atlantic. The natural climate pattern marked by cooler than average ocean temperatures in the tropical Pacific Ocean exerts its greatest influence on US weather in winter, but signs of it could arise later this fall.

Forecasters are monitoring potential tropical trouble at the turn of the month; the climatological peak of hurricane season is less than two weeks away; and the most active portion of the season continues through mid-October.

Any storms that pass near US coasts through the end of hurricane season could also unload rain and “result in periods of cooler-than-normal temperatures for these areas this fall,” the CPC said.

The active hurricane forecast also means the East Coast could end the fall wetter than normal.

The other extreme is possible over large sections of the western and central US, where lower than normal precipitation is forecast. A lack of necessary rain could worsen drought conditions in areas that have already spent the summer drying out.

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EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) -- This weekend, the League of Women Voters of El Paso celebrated Women’s Equality Day early, reflecting on the progress made since the 19th Amendment and urging greater voter engagement.

Carol Wallace, President of the League, welcomed new members and emphasized the importance of voting and civic education.

Teresa Navarez, Vice President of Communication, pointed out that despite high registration rates, El Paso has one of the lowest voter turnout rates in the state.

The League encourages everyone to vote, stay informed, and bring others to the polls.

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By Mary Gilbert and Robert Shackelford, CNN Meteorologist

(CNN) — The Atlantic hurricane season might be quiet for now, but the same can’t be said in the Pacific, where Hurricane Hone is bearing down on Hawaii.

A tropical storm warning is in effect for Hawaii’s Big Island with the storm bringing heavy rain, strong winds, dangerous seas and fire concerns to a tinder-dry state still recovering from one of the most devastating fires in US history. Much of the island is also under a flash flood warning, with Hilo International Airport having seen a 36-hour rainfall total of 4.46 inches.

Hawaii Gov. Josh Green declared a state of emergency Saturday evening due to the threats from Hone and the elevated fire danger in the state. The disaster emergency relief period will continue through Monday, according to the proclamation.

Tropical activity has been abundant in the Pacific Ocean this year, but none of the seven East Pacific named storms have come close to Hawaii. Hone, the first storm to form in the Central Pacific since 2019, has broken that mold.

Hone reached hurricane strength early Sunday. It continued to strengthen, reaching maximum sustained winds of 85 mph later in the morning, according to the National Hurricane Center. It’s about 210 miles south-southeast of Honolulu, moving west at 8 mph as it begins to gradually move away from the Big Island.

The storm is forecast to remain at hurricane strength before starting to weaken Sunday afternoon. It’s expected to pass near or just south of the Big Island through early Sunday and will continue to head west Sunday and into Monday before beginning to slow.

Tropical storm-force winds extend about 115 miles from the center of Hone and are beginning to impact the Big Island. Widespread wind gusts across the Big Island could reach 70 mph with gusts at summits potentially reaching 85 mph.

Widespread rainfall totals of 6 to 12 inches were expected on the windward and southeast facing slopes of the Big Island, according to the hurricane center. “Rainfall totals of 2 to 4 inches will be possible over portions of the smaller islands, mainly windward,” it warned.

Maui could see around 6 inches and Oahu could pick up 2 to 4 inches of rain into early this week, especially on the eastern side of the island. Heavy rain could cause flash flooding and area waterways to swell.

In addition to potentially flooding rainfall, Hone will also deliver gusty winds this weekend, especially over the Big Island.

“Winds are expected to be strongest where they blow downslope from higher terrain, over headlands and through passes,” the hurricane center warned on Saturday.

The storm’s strongest winds were expected to last from late Saturday through Sunday as it passes south of the Big Island.

Breezy conditions continue to raise fire danger concerns over parts of the state where winds get stronger without the rain to accompany them.

Red flag warnings have been issued for leeward areas which generally include the western and southern coasts of each island in Hawaii’s chain. Lahaina, which was devastated by wildfires last year, is also under a red flag warning.

The increased fire danger is particularly concerning given drought conditions in the state are worse this year than they were at the time of last year’s devastating wildfires. Wildfires in Maui last August left more than 100 people dead and caused $6 billion in damage.

Given Hone’s rain, fire weather conditions don’t appear to be as severe as those during last year’s fires, but if dry fuels like grasses and trees catch fire, they will quickly go up in flames. Strong winds could fan those flames and rapidly spread fire to nearby locations.

Around the time of last year’s fires, about 15% of the state was experiencing at least moderate drought, according to the US Drought Monitor. As of August 20, moderate drought or worse conditions covered 73% of Hawaii.

Hone may not be the only system Hawaii contends with over the next couple of weeks.

Gilma, which was a Category 3 hurricane as of Saturday evening as it roared over the open Pacific, will continue to track west. The system will weaken as it approaches Hawaii, but whatever remains of it could take a swipe at the state late next week.

Interests in and around Hawaii may need to continue to monitor for tropical trouble even into early September.

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CNN’s Paradise Afshar contributed to this report.

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(CNN) — The Atlantic hurricane season might be quiet for now, but the same can’t be said in the Pacific, where Hurricane Hone is bearing down on Hawaii.

A tropical storm warning is in effect for Hawaii’s Big Island with the storm bringing heavy rain, strong winds, dangerous seas and fire concerns to a tinder-dry state still recovering from one of the most devastating fires in US history. Much of the island is also under a flash flood warning, with Hilo International Airport having seen a 36-hour rainfall total of 4.46 inches.

Hawaii Gov. Josh Green declared a state of emergency Saturday evening due to the threats from Hone and the elevated fire danger in the state. The disaster emergency relief period will continue through Monday, according to the proclamation.

Tropical activity has been abundant in the Pacific Ocean this year, but none of the seven East Pacific named storms have come close to Hawaii. Hone, the first storm to form in the Central Pacific since 2019, has broken that mold.

Hone reached hurricane strength early Sunday. It continued to strengthen, reaching maximum sustained winds of 85 mph later in the morning, according to the National Hurricane Center. It’s about 210 miles south-southeast of Honolulu, moving west at 8 mph as it begins to gradually move away from the Big Island.

The storm is forecast to remain at hurricane strength before starting to weaken Sunday afternoon. It’s expected to pass near or just south of the Big Island through early Sunday and will continue to head west Sunday and into Monday before beginning to slow.

Tropical storm-force winds extend about 115 miles from the center of Hone and are beginning to impact the Big Island. Widespread wind gusts across the Big Island could reach 70 mph with gusts at summits potentially reaching 85 mph.

Widespread rainfall totals of 6 to 12 inches were expected on the windward and southeast facing slopes of the Big Island, according to the hurricane center. “Rainfall totals of 2 to 4 inches will be possible over portions of the smaller islands, mainly windward,” it warned.

Maui could see around 6 inches and Oahu could pick up 2 to 4 inches of rain into early this week, especially on the eastern side of the island. Heavy rain could cause flash flooding and area waterways to swell.

In addition to potentially flooding rainfall, Hone will also deliver gusty winds this weekend, especially over the Big Island.

“Winds are expected to be strongest where they blow downslope from higher terrain, over headlands and through passes,” the hurricane center warned on Saturday.

The storm’s strongest winds were expected to last from late Saturday through Sunday as it passes south of the Big Island.

Breezy conditions continue to raise fire danger concerns over parts of the state where winds get stronger without the rain to accompany them.

Red flag warnings have been issued for leeward areas which generally include the western and southern coasts of each island in Hawaii’s chain. Lahaina, which was devastated by wildfires last year, is also under a red flag warning.

The increased fire danger is particularly concerning given drought conditions in the state are worse this year than they were at the time of last year’s devastating wildfires. Wildfires in Maui last August left more than 100 people dead and caused $6 billion in damage.

Given Hone’s rain, fire weather conditions don’t appear to be as severe as those during last year’s fires, but if dry fuels like grasses and trees catch fire, they will quickly go up in flames. Strong winds could fan those flames and rapidly spread fire to nearby locations.

Around the time of last year’s fires, about 15% of the state was experiencing at least moderate drought, according to the US Drought Monitor. As of August 20, moderate drought or worse conditions covered 73% of Hawaii.

Hone may not be the only system Hawaii contends with over the next couple of weeks.

Gilma, which was a Category 3 hurricane as of Saturday evening as it roared over the open Pacific, will continue to track west. The system will weaken as it approaches Hawaii, but whatever remains of it could take a swipe at the state late next week.

Interests in and around Hawaii may need to continue to monitor for tropical trouble even into early September.

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CNN’s Paradise Afshar contributed to this report.

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(CNN) — Tropical activity in an unusually active hurricane season will take a breather after Ernesto, but forecasters don’t believe it will last long.

Atlantic storms will be limited for at least the next week. Dry, dusty air and some disruptive winds in the upper atmosphere are making it difficult for stormy weather to get its act together. A similar setup kept the Atlantic quiet for a few weeks following record-breaking Hurricane Beryl.

But this brief break in activity isn’t likely to last nearly as long, according to forecasts from the Climate Prediction Center. Once the dry, dusty air eases, Atlantic tropical activity could be off to the races as stormy weather pushes off the coast of Africa and out to sea unimpeded.

The center’s latest forecast highlights a broad area in the Atlantic from the western coast of Africa to the Caribbean where tropical activity could reignite in late August and early September.

The western tropical Atlantic, just east of the Caribbean, has the greatest chance for development during the same timeframe.

A 40% or greater development chance stretches nearly into mid-September over much of the tropical Atlantic, according to the forecast, so hurricane season might not be hitting the brakes again anytime soon.

This isn’t surprising because the climatological peak of hurricane season is just a few weeks away.

The Atlantic ocean is also still near record-warm, which could help systems develop and potentially explode in strength – something becoming more common in a world warming due to fossil fuel pollution.

Warm water was one of the chief reasons a chorus of expert voices have called for a hyperactive hurricane season, with multiple groups – including NOAA – saying close to two dozen named storms are possible by season’s end.

The season has already been unusually active, producing five named storms – three of which became hurricanes – by mid-August. Ernesto strengthened into the third hurricane of the season almost a month earlier than normal, according to the NHC.

Beryl also shattered expectations when it became the earliest Category 5 hurricane on record in early July. It was a major hurricane – Category 3 or stronger – almost two months ahead of schedule.

These early storms aren’t the only signal of how unusually active the season has been.

This season is the third most active to date since the 1960s, according to one measure of tropical activity used by hurricane experts. Only 2005 and 1980 had a more active start to hurricane season, according to Michael Lowry, a hurricane expert.

The busiest part of hurricane season typically starts in mid-August, peaks around September 10 and persists into mid-October. About 68% of all Atlantic tropical activity typically unfolds after September 1, according to data tracked by researchers at Colorado State University.

This season has already racked up about half of the activity an entire normal season would produce with plenty of tropical activity to come.

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(CNN) — Extreme weather in parts of Canada is causing flooding and power outages in several areas, including Toronto, Mississauga, and North Dumfries Township.

Environment Canada issued several weather alerts Saturday, including rainfall warnings and a severe thunderstorms watch.

In Toronto, extremely heavy rain continues as of 3:08 p.m., with rainfall amounts of 100 to 200 mm. Mississauga is also experiencing heavy rain that is expected to continue this afternoon through Sunday, according to Environment Canada.

In the Waterloo Region, emergency services provided support across the area “after a tornado warning and reports of a tornado touching down in North Dumfries Township,” according to a news release from Waterloo Regional Police.

“At approximately 11 a.m., police responded to reports of a tornado touching down in the area of Greenfield Road between Northumberland Street and Trussler Road in Ayr,” the release read. “Multiple homes and businesses in the area sustained property damage, and several trees and power lines were downed.”

According to the Waterloo Regional Police, power is out for approximately 3,000 customers in Ayr due to the storm.

“No physical injuries were reported in North Dumfries Township or throughout Waterloo Region due to the tornado and severe weather,” the release read.

Mississauga Fire said in a post on X that firefighters assisted pedestrians in areas impacted by flooding. There were also several road closures.

“Some roads are experiencing localized flooding. Stay safe and plan your route accordingly,” Mississauga Fire said.

Toronto Pearson Airport Saturday experienced service interruption due to weather conditions.

“Due to a disruptive storm system over Toronto Pearson airport this afternoon for a sustained period of time, there are many resulting flight diversions and ground delays. This is having a major impact on passengers,” Toronto Pearson Airport posted on X. “Travellers are encouraged to check with their airlines before leaving for the airport. Updates to follow.”

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CNN

By Mary Gilbert, CNN Meteorologist

(CNN) — Ernesto delivered a blow to Bermuda Saturday and was ramping up coastal danger for much of the United States’ Eastern Seaboard after it thrashed Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands, leaving hundreds of thousands of people without power.

Ernesto made landfall on Bermuda early Saturday as a Category 1 hurricane, with sustained wind speeds of 85 mph and gusts at 105 mph, according to the 5 a.m. ET update from the National Hurricane Center.

By 5 a.m. ET Sunday, Ernesto was a tropical storm with maximum sustained winds of 70 mph well northeast of Bermuda. headed north-northeast. It is expected to re-strengthen back into a hurricane sometime on Sunday as it heads toward Atlantic Canada, and a watch could be issued for Newfoundland, Canada, on Sunday or Monday, the National Hurricane Center said.

Even though Ernesto was hundreds of miles away from the US coast Sunday, deadly rip currents will be a threat from Florida through Maine Sunday and Monday.

“Swells generated by Ernesto are affecting portions of Bermuda, the East Coast of the United States, and Atlantic Canada,” the NHC said Sunday morning. “Life-threatening surf and rip current conditions are likely in these areas during the next couple of days.”

By Monday, the storm will head toward Atlantic Canada, and watches may be required for portions of Newfoundland and Labrador. The Canadian Hurricane Centre said impacts will include moderate to high surf along the Atlantic Coast of Nova Scotia, and some rain and moderate winds to southeasternmost Newfoundland.

“There could be some minor damage to docks and coastal structures,” the Canadian Hurricane Centre said.

Ernesto’s strength late this week was fueled by the extremely warm waters of the Atlantic — a phenomenon that’s becoming more frequent in a world warming due to fossil fuel pollution — but dry air interacting with the system prevented explosive strengthening.

The center of the hurricane moved over Bermuda on Saturday, but drenching rain and tropical storm-force wind gusts were already underway Friday over the tiny island, which is about a third of the size of Washington, DC.

The Bermuda International Airport reported tropical storm-force conditions with sustained winds of 41 mph with a gust to 63 mph, according to the National Hurricane Center.

Tropical storm conditions continued in Bermuda into Saturday evening.

Ernesto was expected to unload 6 to 12 inches of rain over the island through Saturday night, with potential for isolated totals to approach 15 inches.

“This may result in considerable life-threatening flash flooding,” the National Hurricane Center warned Thursday.

Dangerous storm surge and significant coastal flooding will also unfold as Ernesto makes its closest approach to the island Saturday.

Dangerous surf for Eastern Seaboard

Ernesto will have wide-reaching impacts despite remaining so far from large land masses.

The hurricane will create massive waves — perhaps up to 40 feet high — in the open Atlantic that will spread hundreds of miles away. These elevated wave heights will bring rough seas and dangerous rip currents to the US East Coast, the Bahamas and parts of the Caribbean into early next week.

Two Ohio men are dead, officials say, after getting caught in rip currents hours apart on Hilton Head Island Friday as the hurricane moved north in the Atlantic Ocean.

The drownings happened about five hours apart at separate beaches on Hilton Head, a spokesperson for the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office, Master Sgt. Daniel Allen, told CNN Saturday.

The first drowning occurred around 10:30 a.m. followed by the second drowning at about 3:20 p.m., Allen said.

Both men were visiting the area from Ohio, according to Allen, who noted that beach officials “warned people to be cautious of going out deep in water and to be cautious of rip currents.”

It is unclear whethear there was a connection or relation between the two men.

For a majority of the US Atlantic coast, the most dangerous coastal conditions will unfold over the weekend, coinciding with the time many people flock to the beach. Ernesto “will result in very dangerous rip currents (Saturday and Sunday),” the National Weather Service in Mount Holly, New Jersey, warned Thursday.

Rip currents can exhaust even the strongest swimmers and turn deadly. At least 29 people have been killed in rip currents this year in the US and its territories, according to the National Weather Service.

Beyond Bermuda, Ernesto will pass close to Atlantic Canada early next week and potentially bring some rain, wind and rough seas.

Outages linger after Ernesto

Ernesto’s center never made landfall over Puerto Rico or the US Virgin Islands but the system’s strong winds still knocked out power to hundreds of thousands of people in total.

In Puerto Rico, about half of all customers on the island were at one point without power Wednesday, according to LUMA Energy, the private company that operates the transmission and distribution of power in Puerto Rico. By Friday morning, more than 200,000 were still in the dark.

In the US Virgin Islands, just over 10,000 customers were still without power Friday morning, about 20% of the island’s tracked customers, according to PowerOutage.us.

Heavy rain soaked the Virgin Islands late Tuesday and Wednesday. More than half a foot of rain drenched much of Puerto Rico and caused widespread flash flooding. Some locations recorded nearly a foot of rain from Ernesto: Just over 10 inches of rain fell over a 24-hour period in the mountain town of Barranquitas, according to a preliminary weather service report, while Villalba saw around 9.5 inches.

Intense rainfall and flooding caused several rivers to overflow their banks in Puerto Rico and interrupted water filtration processes at a number of water processing plants to varying degrees, according to the island’s water authority.

Even as Ernesto moved a few hundred miles away from Puerto Rico Wednesday night, water issues worsened. More than 250,000 water customers – about 20% of total customers – were without drinking water Friday morning, according to the island’s emergency portal system.

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CNN’s Amanda Musa and CNN meteorologists Elliana Hebert and Allison Chinchar contributed to this report.

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CNN

By Mary Gilbert, CNN Meteorologist

(CNN) — Ernesto is delivering a blow to Bermuda and is ramping up coastal danger for much of the United States’ Eastern Seaboard after it thrashed Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands, leaving hundreds of thousands of people without power.

The hurricane made landfall on Bermuda early Saturday as a Category 1 storm, with sustained wind speeds of 85 mph and gusts at 105 mph, according to the 5 a.m. ET update from the National Hurricane Center. A hurricane warning is in effect for the island.

Powerful winds from the large hurricane extend hundreds of miles from its center and while Bermuda will receive the worst impacts from Ernesto, the US Eastern Seaboard is expected to see dangerous rip currents and large waves over the weekend.

Ernesto’s strength late this week was fueled by the extremely warm waters of the Atlantic — a phenomenon that’s becoming more frequent in a world warming due to fossil fuel pollution — but dry air interacting with the system prevented explosive strengthening.

The center of the hurricane moved over Bermuda on Saturday, but drenching rain and tropical storm-force wind gusts were already underway Friday over the tiny island, which is about a third of the size of Washington, DC.

The Bermuda International Airport reported tropical storm-force conditions with sustained winds of 41 mph with a gust to 63 mph, according to the National Hurricane Center.

Tropical storm conditions will continue into Saturday evening.

More powerful winds and torrential rainfall will likely arrive late early Saturday. Ernesto could unload 6 to 12 inches of rain over the island through Saturday night, with potential for isolated totals to approach 15 inches.

“This may result in considerable life-threatening flash flooding,” the National Hurricane Center warned Thursday.

Dangerous storm surge and significant coastal flooding will also unfold as Ernesto makes its closest approach to the island Saturday.

Dangerous surf for Eastern Seaboard

Ernesto will have wide-reaching impacts despite remaining so far from large land masses.

The hurricane will create massive waves — perhaps up to 40 feet high — in the open Atlantic that will spread hundreds of miles away. These elevated wave heights will bring rough seas and dangerous rip currents to the US East Coast, the Bahamas and parts of the Caribbean into early next week.

For a majority of the US Atlantic coast, the most dangerous coastal conditions will unfold over the weekend, coinciding with the time many people flock to the beach. Ernesto “will result in very dangerous rip currents (Saturday and Sunday),” the National Weather Service in Mount Holly, New Jersey, warned Thursday.

Rip currents can exhaust even the strongest swimmers and turn deadly. At least 29 people have been killed in rip currents this year in the US and its territories, according to the National Weather Service.

Beyond Bermuda, Ernesto will pass close to Atlantic Canada early next week and potentially bring some rain, wind and rough seas.

Outages linger after Ernesto

Ernesto’s center never made landfall over Puerto Rico or the US Virgin Islands but the system’s strong winds still knocked out power to hundreds of thousands of people in total.

In Puerto Rico, about half of all customers on the island were at one point without power Wednesday, according to LUMA Energy, the private company that operates the transmission and distribution of power in Puerto Rico. By Friday morning, more than 200,000 were still in the dark.

In the US Virgin Islands, just over 10,000 customers were still without power Friday morning, about 20% of the island’s tracked customers, according to PowerOutage.us.

Heavy rain soaked the Virgin Islands late Tuesday and Wednesday. More than half a foot of rain drenched much of Puerto Rico and caused widespread flash flooding. Some locations recorded nearly a foot of rain from Ernesto: Just over 10 inches of rain fell over a 24-hour period in the mountain town of Barranquitas, according to a preliminary weather service report, while Villalba saw around 9.5 inches.

Intense rainfall and flooding caused several rivers to overflow their banks in Puerto Rico and interrupted water filtration processes at a number of water processing plants to varying degrees, according to the island’s water authority.

Even as Ernesto moved a few hundred miles away from Puerto Rico Wednesday night, water issues worsened. More than 250,000 water customers – about 20% of total customers – were without drinking water Friday morning, according to the island’s emergency portal system.

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CNN Meteorologist Elliana Hebert contributed to this report.

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EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) -- Project Bravo and private partners are working to with the County of El Paso to place solar panels that create drinking water from water vapor present in the air in underdeveloped parts of El Paso County.

Project Bravo's AguasEsperanza program currently has four sets of SOURCE® Global Hydropanels in the Hueco Tanks Estates colonia near the eastern edge of El Paso County. An Arizona company makes the panels that use solar power to condense water vapor, creating multiple gallons of water a day.

"I think that that we take for granted how important it is to have healthy, safe and affordable drinking water," said Laura Ponce, Executive Director of Project Bravo.

Project Bravo started the pilot program with the panels two years ago. A $150,000 grant from Wells Fargo will allow Project Bravo to now expand the program to 11 families in the same area.

El Paso County Commissioner for Precinct 1 Carlos Leon visited one of the previously installed sets of panels. He says he was impressed and wants to see more of them put into place, particularly since the area may not be able to get regular water utilities for decades to come.;

"The family that I visited with actually has it connected to her house and her refrigerator," Leon said. "So she has cold water and ice cubes. I tasted it, it tastes great."

Olga Thomas was another one of the recipients of the panels from the pilot program. It's been an important change to her quality of life.

"Oh my gosh, it has been a lifesaver for me as far as I'm concerned," Thomas said

Previously, she had to regularly buy bottled water to drink.

"I'm by myself at a mobile home, and I have health issues," Thomas said. "So it's very hard for me to, for instance, go to the store real quick to get some water."

Commissioner Leon says that El Paso County has previously looked into getting water service extended to other colonias. Even when existing water mains are close by, the costs quickly add up.

"It would have been about $42,000 just to get that water extended around the block," Leon said. "So you can see the extraordinary expense"

With the Wells Fargo grant announced this week, Project Bravo hopeful that more will also join the effort. They are currently working on securing additional donors to further expand the program.

"We may be able to provide panels for 75 families by the end of the year," Ponce said.

There are about 400 households in the Hueco Tanks estates area. Thomas wants everyone to get the same service she has now.

"And if I could, I would go door to door and talk to them and show them," Thomsas said. "I would even put a sign saying, you know, coming over, check it out and look how it works."

Residents can contact Project Bravo to be considered for the expansion of the AguaEsperanza program on their website, or can reach out to Commissioner Leon's office as well.

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(CNN) — Ernesto regained Category 1 hurricane strength with 80 mph sustained winds Sunday as it headed toward Atlantic Canada, following its thrashing of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands, where it left hundreds of thousands of people without power.

Ernesto made landfall on Bermuda early Saturday as a Category 1 hurricane with sustained wind speeds of 85 mph and gusts at 105 mph but had weakened to a tropical storm by early Sunday with maximum sustained winds of 70 mph well northeast of Bermuda, according to the US National Hurricane Center.

Hurricane Ernesto was located about 435 miles south of Halifax, Nova Scotia, by Sunday night, the hurricane center said in its 11 p.m. ET update.

“Some additional intensification is forecast over the next 12 hours followed by weakening before Ernesto becomes a post-tropical cyclone on Tuesday,” the hurricane center said Sunday evening.

Even though Ernesto was hundreds of miles away from the US coast Sunday, deadly rip currents will be a threat from Florida through Maine Sunday and Monday. Large swells and rough surf continued to be a problem along the East Coast by Sunday evening and left many beaches closed throughout the weekend.

“Life-threatening surf and rip current conditions are likely in these areas during the next couple of days,” the hurricane center warned.

By Monday, the storm will head toward Atlantic Canada, and watches may be required for portions of Newfoundland and Labrador. The Canadian Hurricane Centre said impacts will include moderate to high surf along the Atlantic coast of Nova Scotia, and some rain and moderate winds to southeasternmost Newfoundland.

“There could be some minor damage to docks and coastal structures,” the Canadian Hurricane Centre said.

The Canadian Hurricane Centre issued hurricane-force wind warnings for the Canadian offshore waters of Laurentian Fan and the southwestern Grand Banks for Monday.

Ernesto’s strength late this week was fueled by the extremely warm waters of the Atlantic — a phenomenon becoming more frequent in a world warming due to fossil fuel pollution — but dry air interacting with the system prevented explosive strengthening.

The center of the hurricane moved over Bermuda on Saturday, but drenching rain and tropical storm-force wind gusts were already underway Friday over the tiny island, which is about a third of the size of Washington, DC.

The Bermuda International Airport reported tropical storm-force conditions with sustained winds of 41 mph with a gust to 63 mph, according to the National Hurricane Center.

Tropical storm conditions continued in Bermuda into Saturday evening.

Dangerous surf for Eastern Seaboard

Ernesto continues to have wide-reaching effects despite remaining so far from large land masses.

The hurricane will create massive waves — perhaps up to 40 feet high — in the open Atlantic, spreading hundreds of miles away. The elevated wave heights will bring rough seas and dangerous rip currents to the US East Coast, the Bahamas and parts of the Caribbean into early next week.

Two Ohio men are dead, officials say, after getting caught in rip currents hours apart on Hilton Head Island Friday as the hurricane moved north in the Atlantic Ocean.

The drownings happened about five hours apart at separate beaches on Hilton Head, a spokesperson for the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office, Master Sgt. Daniel Allen, told CNN Saturday.

The first drowning occurred around 10:30 a.m. followed by the second drowning at about 3:20 p.m., Allen said.

Both men were visiting the area from Ohio, according to Allen, who noted beach officials “warned people to be cautious of going out deep in water and to be cautious of rip currents.”

It is unclear whether there was a connection or relation between the two men.

For a majority of the US Atlantic coast, the most dangerous coastal conditions unfolded over the weekend, coinciding with the time many people flock to the beach.

Rip currents can exhaust even the strongest swimmers and turn deadly. At least 29 people have been killed in rip currents this year in the US and its territories, according to the National Weather Service.

Beyond Bermuda, Ernesto will pass close to Atlantic Canada early next week and potentially bring some rain, wind and rough seas.

Outages linger after Ernesto

Ernesto’s center never made landfall over Puerto Rico or the US Virgin Islands but the system’s strong winds still knocked out power to hundreds of thousands of people.

In Puerto Rico, about half the customers on the island were at one point without power Wednesday, according to LUMA Energy, the private company operating the transmission and distribution of power in Puerto Rico. By Friday morning, more than 200,000 were still in the dark, but the island showed signs of recovery by Sunday when nearly 96% of customers were reported to have power, according to LUMA Energy.

In the US Virgin Islands, where just over 10,000 customers were without power Friday morning, the number of affected customers had dropped to around 1,400 by Sunday evening, according to PowerOutage.us.

Heavy rain soaked the Virgin Islands late Tuesday and Wednesday. More than half a foot of rain drenched much of Puerto Rico and caused widespread flash flooding. Some locations recorded nearly a foot of rain from Ernesto: Just over 10 inches of rain fell over a 24-hour period in the mountain town of Barranquitas, according to a preliminary weather service report, while Villalba saw around 9.5 inches.

Intense rainfall and flooding caused several rivers to overflow their banks in Puerto Rico and interrupted water filtration processes at a number of water processing plants to varying degrees, according to the island’s water authority.

Even as Ernesto moved a few hundred miles away from Puerto Rico Wednesday night, water issues worsened. More than 250,000 water customers – about 20% of total customers – were without drinking water Friday morning, according to the island’s emergency portal system.

CNN’s Amanda Musa, Ashley R. Williams and CNN meteorologists Elliana Hebert, Allison Chinchar and Robert Shackelford contributed to this report.

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By Mary Gilbert, CNN Meteorologist

(CNN) — Hurricane Ernesto is on track to strengthen over record-warm water to deliver a blow to Bermuda and ramp up coastal danger for much of the United States’ Eastern Seaboard after it thrashed Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands, leaving hundreds of thousands of people without power.

The Category 1 hurricane will intensify and could become the season’s second major hurricane — Category 3 or stronger — as it crosses 600 miles of the Atlantic before reaching Bermuda early Saturday. A hurricane warning is in effect for the island.

Ernesto’s robust strengthening will be fueled by the extremely warm waters of the Atlantic – a phenomenon that’s becoming more frequent in a world warming due to fossil fuel pollution. The second major hurricane typically doesn’t arrive in an average season until mid-September, if it happens at all.

The center of the hurricane will track near or over Bermuda on Saturday but powerful wind gusts and heavy rain will arrive earlier. Drenching rain and tropical storm-force wind gusts could begin as early as Friday morning over the tiny island, which is about a third of the size of Washington, DC.

More powerful winds and torrential rainfall will likely arrive late Friday or early Saturday. Ernesto could unload 4 to 8 inches of rain over the island through Saturday night, with potential for isolated totals to approach a foot.

“This may result in considerable life-threatening flash flooding,” the National Hurricane Center warned Thursday.

Dangerous storm surge and significant coastal flooding will also unfold as Ernesto makes its closest approach to the island Saturday.

Dangerous surf for Eastern Seaboard

Ernesto will have wide-reaching impacts despite remaining so far from large land masses.

The hurricane will create massive waves — perhaps up to 40 feet high — in the open Atlantic that will spread hundreds of miles away. These elevated wave heights will bring rough seas and dangerous rip currents to the US East Coast, the Bahamas and parts of the Caribbean into early next week.

For a majority of the US Atlantic coast, the most dangerous coastal conditions will unfold over the weekend, coinciding with the time many people flock to the beach. Ernesto “will result in very dangerous rip currents (Saturday and Sunday),” the National Weather Service in Mount Holly, New Jersey, warned Thursday.

Rip currents can exhaust even the strongest swimmers and turn deadly. At least 29 people have been killed in rip currents this year in the US and its territories, according to the National Weather Service.

Beyond Bermuda, Ernesto will pass close to Atlantic Canada early next week and potentially bring some rain, wind and rough seas.

Outages linger after Ernesto

Ernesto’s center never made landfall over Puerto Rico or the US Virgin Islands but the system’s strong winds still knocked out power to hundreds of thousands of people in total.

In Puerto Rico, about half of all customers on the island were at one point without power Wednesday, according to LUMA Energy, the private company that operates the transmission and distribution of power in Puerto Rico. By Thursday afternoon, more than 300,000 were still in the dark.

In the US Virgin Islands, about 20,000 customers were without power Thursday evening, just under half of the island’s tracked customers, according to PowerOutage.us.

Heavy rain soaked the Virgin Islands late Tuesday and Wednesday. More than half a foot of rain drenched much of Puerto Rico and caused widespread flash flooding. Some locations recorded nearly a foot of rain from Ernesto: Just over 10 inches of rain fell over a 24-hour period in the mountain town of Barranquitas, according to a preliminary weather service report, while Villalba saw around 9.5 inches.

Intense rainfall and flooding caused several rivers to overflow their banks in Puerto Rico and interrupted water filtration processes at a number of water processing plants to varying degrees, according to the island’s water authority.

Even as Ernesto moved a few hundred miles away from Puerto Rico Wednesday night, water issues worsened. More than 250,000 water customers – about 20% of total customers – were without drinking water Thursday evening, down slightly from 300,000 customers earlier in the day, according to the island’s emergency portal system.

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CNN, WLII, ABBY V BRU, GERAL ROSADO, KANIDSHA MELENDEZ, SEF GRAHAM, WILFRED MULLER

By Elizabeth Wolfe, Robert Shackelford and Mary Gilbert, CNN

(CNN) — This story is out of date. Check out the new forecast for Hurricane Ernesto here.

Hurricane Ernesto unloaded flooding rainfall on Puerto Rico as it pulled away from the island Wednesday afternoon after its strong winds knocked out power to hundreds of thousands there and in the Virgin Islands.

The Category 1 hurricane had maximum sustained winds of 85 mph early Thursday, according to the National Hurricane Center.

“Strengthening is forecast during the next couple of days, and Ernesto could become a major hurricane by Friday,” the hurricane center said. A storm of Category 3 or higher is considered a major hurricane.

After passing over the Virgin Islands on Tuesday and then sidestepping Puerto Rico, Ernesto was about 635 miles southwest of Bermuda as of the center’s 5 a.m. update.

A hurricane warning has been issued for Bermuda, which is expected to begin feeling impacts from Ernesto Friday afternoon. In addition to hurricane-force winds, the island could see significant coastal flooding and up to 8 inches of widespread rainfall – with up to a foot of rain in isolated areas.

Strong winds extended far from its center and gusted in excess of 74 mph – hurricane-strength – in Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands.

In Puerto Rico, about half of all customers on the island were at one point without power Wednesday, according to LUMA Energy, the private company that operates the transmission and distribution of power in Puerto Rico. By Wednesday night, about 540,000 were still in the dark.

In the US Virgin Islands, almost 28,000 customers were without power, which is about 55% of the island’s tracked customers, according to PowerOutage.us.

More than half a foot of rain fell in Puerto Rico and the storm’s trailing bands of storms continued to unload Wednesday afternoon, causing flash flooding — especially in the eastern and southern parts of Puerto Rico and in the Virgin Islands.

In the mountain town of Barranquitas, just over 10 inches fell over a 24-hour period, according to a preliminary weather service report, while Villalba saw around 9.5 inches of rain.

Multiple flood warnings were still in effect Wednesday evening for northern parts of Puerto Rico.

Water processing systems impacted

Intense rainfall and flooding caused several rivers to flood in Puerto Rico and interrupted water filtration processes at a number of water processing plants to varying degrees, according to the island’s water authority.

These interruptions left more than 120,000 water customers – about 10% of total customers – without drinking water early Wednesday afternoon, according to the island’s emergency portal system.

Ernesto has made its way into open Atlantic waters, but its force was still felt across parts of the Caribbean through much of the day.

Along Puerto Rico’s eastern coastline, storm surge raised water levels by 1 to 3 feet early Wednesday. Life-threatening swells and rip tides could prove dangerous for anyone in the water through the weekend.

Ahead of the storm, Puerto Rico Gov. Pedro Pierluisi mobilized the National Guard and urged people to shelter in their homes. Across the island, public schools are closed and nearly 80 shelters have been opened.

Residents had been warned to brace for widespread power outages as the island’s fragile and outdated electrical grid is still being repaired after it was crippled by Hurricane Maria in 2017.

Power outages are a familiar frustration among Puerto Ricans, many of whom have witnessed painstakingly slow efforts to modernize an electrical grid that remains highly vulnerable to natural disasters.

LUMA Energy said it has mobilized crews across the islands to respond to outages. And LUMA’s president, Juan Saca, urged people to report blackouts, noting the utility may not be aware of them all.

“Puerto Rico’s electrical system is not sufficiently modernized to detect power outages,” Saca said Tuesday, The Associated Press reported.

Where Ernesto is headed next

Ernesto began curving gradually to the north on Wednesday, bringing it away from the Caribbean and into open Atlantic waters, where it is expected to strengthen further.

Ernesto will become a powerful Category 3 major hurricane late this week and could retain that strength or be a strong Category 2 hurricane as it passes near Bermuda this weekend. How significant of a blow the storm will deliver to Bermuda depends on how close it gets to the tiny island, which is a third of the size of Washington, DC.

“Rainfall associated with Ernesto may begin to affect Bermuda as early as Thursday and result in flash flooding across Bermuda later in the week and this weekend,” the US hurricane center said.

Bermuda will record stronger rain and wind impacts if the hurricane passes just west of the island as currently forecast. The island could be spared from more intense impacts if Ernesto passes to its east.

Ernesto’s strength will be fueled by very warm ocean water, a consequence of global temperature rise from fossil fuel pollution, and minimal storm-disrupting upper level winds.

Ernesto will have wide-reaching impacts later this week and this weekend despite a track somewhere over the open Atlantic.

While the storm is not a direct threat to the United States mainland, it will bring dangerous beach conditions to the entire Eastern seaboard.

“Swells are expected to reach the east coast of the United States Thursday night and continue into the weekend,” the hurricane center said. “These swells are likely to cause life-threatening surf and rip current conditions.”

More tropical trouble ahead?

Aside from Ernesto, no tropical systems are currently expected in the Atlantic into at least early next week.

This small break in new development won’t last long.

The chances for another hurricane will ramp up again later in August and persist through at least early September, according to the Climate Prediction Center.

Mid-August to about mid-October is hurricane season’s most active period, so the predicted ramp-up certainly checks out.

But tropical activity in the Atlantic is already pacing ahead of average. The basin typically doesn’t have its fifth named storm until late August or its third hurricane until early September.

Both have already occurred in what’s expected to end up as a very busy season.

CNN Meteorologist Taylor Ward and CNN’s Ella Nilsen and Amanda Musa contributed to this report.

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(CNN) — Here’s a look at some statistics from Hurricane Katrina.

August 29, 2005

Katrina makes landfall near Grand Isle, Louisiana as a Category 3 storm with winds near 127 mph.
– Severe flooding damage to cities along the Gulf Coast, from New Orleans to Biloxi, Mississippi.
– Numerous failures of levees around New Orleans led to catastrophic flooding in the city.
– About 25,000 storm evacuees were sheltered at the Louisiana Superdome, a sports arena. Wind and water damage to the roof created unsafe conditions, leading authorities to conduct emergency evacuations of the Superdome.
– The total damage from Katrina is estimated to be $125 billion ($200 billion in 2024 dollars), according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).

Fatalities

NOAA report
– Direct deaths: 520
– Indirect deaths: 565
– Indeterminate cause: 307
– Total number of fatalities: 1,392

In an analysis of 971 fatalities in Louisiana and 15 additional deaths of storm evacuees, 40% of deaths were caused by drowning. 25% were caused by injury and trauma and 11% were caused by heart conditions.

Nearly half the fatalities in Louisiana were people over the age of 74.

Private Insurance Payments

Insurance Information Institute Report

Insurance companies have paid an estimated $41.1 billion on 1.7 million different claims for damage to vehicles, homes, and businesses in six states. Nearly 56% of the losses occurred in Louisiana and nearly 30% occurred in Mississippi.

By 2007, 99% of the 1.2 million personal property claims had been settled by insurers.

National Flood Insurance Payments

The National Flood Insurance Program paid out $16 billion in claims.

June 2006 – The Government Accountability Office releases a report that concludes at least $1 billion in disaster relief payments made by FEMA were improper and potentially fraudulent.

Impact on the Gulf Coast

More than one million people in the Gulf region were displaced by the storm. At their peak, hurricane relief shelters housed 273,000 people. Later, approximately 114,000 households were housed in FEMA trailers.

During the first ten years after the storm, FEMA provided more than $15 billion to the Gulf states for public works projects, including the repair and rebuilding of roads, schools and buildings. The agency also provided $6.7 billion in recovery aid to more than one million people and households.

The majority of all federal aid, approximately $75 billion of $120.5 billion, funded emergency relief operations.

Impact on New Orleans

The population of New Orleans fell from 484,674 in April 2000 to 230,172 in July 2006, a decrease of over 50%. By 2022, the estimated population had increased to 369,749, according to the Census.

70% of New Orleans’ occupied housing, 134,000 units, were damaged in the storm.

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By Elizabeth Wolfe, Robert Shackelford and Mary Gilbert, CNN

(CNN) — Hurricane Ernesto continued to unload flooding rainfall on Puerto Rico as it pulled away from the island Wednesday afternoon after its strong winds knocked out power to hundreds of thousands there and in the Virgin Islands.

The Category 1 hurricane had maximum sustained winds of 75 mph as of 2 p.m. EDT, according to the National Hurricane Center. Its center was more than 200 miles northwest of San Juan, Puerto Rico, Wednesday afternoon after passing over the Virgin Islands on Tuesday and then sidestepping Puerto Rico.

Strong winds extended far from its center and gusted in excess of 74 mph – hurricane-strength – in Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands.

As a result, more than 700,000 customers in Puerto Rico – half of all customers on the island – were without power Wednesday, according to LUMA Energy, the private company that operates the transmission and distribution of power in Puerto Rico. The number of outages doubled in just a few hours Wednesday morning.

In the US Virgin Islands, more than 46,000 customers were without power, which is about 92% of the island’s tracked customers, according to PowerOutage.us.

Nearly a half a foot of rain had fallen so far in Puerto Rico and the storm’s trailing bands of storms continued to unload it Wednesday afternoon, causing flash flooding — especially in the eastern and southern parts of Puerto Rico and in the Virgin Islands.

Multiple flash flood warnings were still in effect Wednesday afternoon for Puerto Rico.

Intense rainfall and flooding caused several rivers to flood in Puerto Rico and interrupted water filtration processes at a number of water processing plants to varying degrees, according to the island’s water authority.

These interruptions left more than 120,000 water customers – about 10% of total customers – without drinking water early Wednesday afternoon, according to the island’s emergency portal system.

Ernesto will make its way into open Atlantic waters later Wednesday where it is eventually expected to strengthen into a major hurricane, but its force will still be felt across parts of the Caribbean through much of the day.

Along Puerto Rico’s eastern coastline, storm surge raised water levels by 1 to 3 feet early Wednesday. Life-threatening swells and rip tides could prove dangerous for anyone in the water through the weekend.

Ahead of the storm, Puerto Rico Gov. Pedro Pierluisi mobilized the National Guard and urged people to shelter in their homes. Across the island, public schools are closed and nearly 80 shelters have been opened.

Residents were also warned to brace for widespread power outages as the island’s fragile and outdated electrical grid is still being repaired after it was crippled by Hurricane Maria in 2017.

Power outages are a familiar frustration among Puerto Ricans, many of whom have witnessed painstakingly slow efforts to modernize an electrical grid that remains highly vulnerable to natural disasters.

LUMA Energy said it has mobilized crews across the islands to respond to outages. And LUMA’s president, Juan Saca, urged people to report blackouts, noting the utility may not be aware of them all.

“Puerto Rico’s electrical system is not sufficiently modernized to detect power outages,” Saca said Tuesday, The Associated Press reported.

Where Ernesto is headed next

Ernesto will begin curving gradually to the north on Wednesday, bringing it away from the Caribbean and into open Atlantic waters, where it is expected to strengthen further.

Ernesto will become a powerful Category 3 major hurricane late this week and could retain that strength or be a strong Category 2 hurricane as it passes near Bermuda this weekend. How significant of a blow the storm will deliver to Bermuda depends on how close it gets to the tiny island, which is a third of the size of Washington, DC.

Bermuda will record stronger rain and wind impacts if the hurricane passes just west of the island as currently forecast. The island could be spared from more intense impacts if Ernesto passes to its east.

Ernesto’s strength will be fueled by very warm ocean water, a consequence of global temperature rise from fossil fuel pollution, and minimal storm-disrupting upper level winds.

Ernesto will have wide-reaching impacts later this week and this weekend despite a track somewhere over the open Atlantic.

The storm will churn up seas hundreds of miles away and could create dangerous rip currents for the US East Coast, the Bahamas and parts of the Caribbean into early next week.

More tropical trouble ahead?

Aside from Ernesto, no tropical systems are currently expected in the Atlantic into at least early next week.

This small break in new development won’t last long.

The chances for another hurricane will ramp up again later in August and persist through at least early September, according to the Climate Prediction Center.

Mid-August to about mid-October is hurricane season’s most active period, so the predicted ramp-up certainly checks out.

But tropical activity in the Atlantic is already pacing ahead of average. The basin typically doesn’t have its fifth named storm until late August or its third hurricane until early September.

Both have already occurred in what’s expected to end up as a very busy season.

CNN’s Ella Nilsen and Amanda Musa contributed to this report.

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(CNN) — Hurricane Ernesto unloaded flooding rainfall on Puerto Rico as it pulled away from the island Wednesday afternoon after its strong winds knocked out power to hundreds of thousands there and in the Virgin Islands.

The Category 1 hurricane had maximum sustained winds of 85 mph early Thursday, according to the National Hurricane Center.

“Strengthening is forecast during the next couple of days, and Ernesto could become a major hurricane by Friday,” the hurricane center said. A storm of Category 3 or higher is considered a major hurricane.

After passing over the Virgin Islands on Tuesday and then sidestepping Puerto Rico, Ernesto was about 635 miles southwest of Bermuda as of the center’s 5 a.m. update.

A hurricane warning has been issued for Bermuda, which is expected to begin feeling impacts from Ernesto Friday afternoon. In addition to hurricane-force winds, the island could see significant coastal flooding and up to 8 inches of widespread rainfall – with up to a foot of rain in isolated areas.

Strong winds extended far from its center and gusted in excess of 74 mph – hurricane-strength – in Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands.

In Puerto Rico, about half of all customers on the island were at one point without power Wednesday, according to LUMA Energy, the private company that operates the transmission and distribution of power in Puerto Rico. By Wednesday night, about 540,000 were still in the dark.

In the US Virgin Islands, almost 28,000 customers were without power, which is about 55% of the island’s tracked customers, according to PowerOutage.us.

More than half a foot of rain fell in Puerto Rico and the storm’s trailing bands of storms continued to unload Wednesday afternoon, causing flash flooding — especially in the eastern and southern parts of Puerto Rico and in the Virgin Islands.

In the mountain town of Barranquitas, just over 10 inches fell over a 24-hour period, according to a preliminary weather service report, while Villalba saw around 9.5 inches of rain.

Multiple flood warnings were still in effect Wednesday evening for northern parts of Puerto Rico.

Water processing systems impacted

Intense rainfall and flooding caused several rivers to flood in Puerto Rico and interrupted water filtration processes at a number of water processing plants to varying degrees, according to the island’s water authority.

These interruptions left more than 120,000 water customers – about 10% of total customers – without drinking water early Wednesday afternoon, according to the island’s emergency portal system.

Ernesto has made its way into open Atlantic waters, but its force was still felt across parts of the Caribbean through much of the day.

Along Puerto Rico’s eastern coastline, storm surge raised water levels by 1 to 3 feet early Wednesday. Life-threatening swells and rip tides could prove dangerous for anyone in the water through the weekend.

Ahead of the storm, Puerto Rico Gov. Pedro Pierluisi mobilized the National Guard and urged people to shelter in their homes. Across the island, public schools are closed and nearly 80 shelters have been opened.

Residents had been warned to brace for widespread power outages as the island’s fragile and outdated electrical grid is still being repaired after it was crippled by Hurricane Maria in 2017.

Power outages are a familiar frustration among Puerto Ricans, many of whom have witnessed painstakingly slow efforts to modernize an electrical grid that remains highly vulnerable to natural disasters.

LUMA Energy said it has mobilized crews across the islands to respond to outages. And LUMA’s president, Juan Saca, urged people to report blackouts, noting the utility may not be aware of them all.

“Puerto Rico’s electrical system is not sufficiently modernized to detect power outages,” Saca said Tuesday, The Associated Press reported.

Where Ernesto is headed next

Ernesto began curving gradually to the north on Wednesday, bringing it away from the Caribbean and into open Atlantic waters, where it is expected to strengthen further.

Ernesto will become a powerful Category 3 major hurricane late this week and could retain that strength or be a strong Category 2 hurricane as it passes near Bermuda this weekend. How significant of a blow the storm will deliver to Bermuda depends on how close it gets to the tiny island, which is a third of the size of Washington, DC.

“Rainfall associated with Ernesto may begin to affect Bermuda as early as Thursday and result in flash flooding across Bermuda later in the week and this weekend,” the US hurricane center said.

Bermuda will record stronger rain and wind impacts if the hurricane passes just west of the island as currently forecast. The island could be spared from more intense impacts if Ernesto passes to its east.

Ernesto’s strength will be fueled by very warm ocean water, a consequence of global temperature rise from fossil fuel pollution, and minimal storm-disrupting upper level winds.

Ernesto will have wide-reaching impacts later this week and this weekend despite a track somewhere over the open Atlantic.

While the storm is not a direct threat to the United States mainland, it will bring dangerous beach conditions to the entire Eastern seaboard.

“Swells are expected to reach the east coast of the United States Thursday night and continue into the weekend,” the hurricane center said. “These swells are likely to cause life-threatening surf and rip current conditions.”

More tropical trouble ahead?

Aside from Ernesto, no tropical systems are currently expected in the Atlantic into at least early next week.

This small break in new development won’t last long.

The chances for another hurricane will ramp up again later in August and persist through at least early September, according to the Climate Prediction Center.

Mid-August to about mid-October is hurricane season’s most active period, so the predicted ramp-up certainly checks out.

But tropical activity in the Atlantic is already pacing ahead of average. The basin typically doesn’t have its fifth named storm until late August or its third hurricane until early September.

Both have already occurred in what’s expected to end up as a very busy season.

CNN Meteorologist Taylor Ward and CNN’s Ella Nilsen and Amanda Musa contributed to this report.

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By Mary Gilbert, CNN Meteorologist

(CNN) — Tropical Storm Ernesto is steadily growing stronger as it slams the northern Caribbean with heavy rain, gusty winds and rough seas Tuesday, lashing the Virgin Islands and heading toward Puerto Rico.

Hurricane watches were in effect for the US and British Virgin Islands, Vieques and Culebra, as forecasters grew more concerned Ernesto could rapidly intensify into a dangerous hurricane thanks to very warm ocean water.

“Ernesto is expected to become a hurricane later tonight or early Wednesday to the north of the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico,” the National Hurricane Center said Tuesday evening.

Previously, it was forecast to reach hurricane-strength later during the day on Wednesday.

The storm’s maximum sustained winds increased by 25 mph to 65 mph over a 12-hour period from Tuesday morning to Tuesday evening. In order to meet the definition of rapid intensification, storms have to gain at least 35 mph of strength over a 24-hour period.

Ernesto’s center was moving over the Virgin Islands on Tuesday evening after tracking near or over Guadeloupe early Tuesday. It’s been on a collision course with the region since forming early Monday evening.

US National Weather Service meteorologists issued a flash flood warning for St. Croix in the US Virgin Islands until 4 a.m.

“Doppler radar indicated southern rainbands from Tropical Storm Ernesto producing heavy rain across the warned area,” the weather service said late Tuesday. “Between 1 and 2 inches of rain have fallen. Additional rainfall amounts of 2 to 3 inches are possible in the warned area. Flash flooding is ongoing or expected to begin shortly.”

Tropical storm-force winds extended up to 115 miles from Ernesto’s center and are delivering gusty winds to much of the region. A 65 mph gust at Saint Barthélemy – known commonly as St. Bart’s – occurred when Ernesto was about 100 miles away.

Ernesto’s wind and rain will spread over more of the region overnight Tuesday and Wednesday.

Tropical storm warnings are in effect for Puerto Rico and the Leeward Islands, including the US and British Virgin Islands. Ernesto’s strong wind gusts are capable of damaging some structures and taking down trees and power lines.

Drenching, potentially flooding rainfall looks to be the most significant threat over parts of the Caribbean this week. Heavy rain will persist for much of the Leeward Islands through Tuesday night but wet weather will linger into Wednesday.

A deluge of rain will begin for the US and British Virgin Islands Tuesday evening and reach Puerto Rico Tuesday night. The heaviest rain should cease over these areas late Wednesday.

Rainfall totals of 4 to 6 inches will be widespread, with up to 10 inches possible in parts of Puerto Rico. Flash flooding and mudslides are possible as a result, especially in the higher terrain areas of eastern and southern Puerto Rico.

Tropical storm-force winds will also pound areas within Ernesto’s path through at least Wednesday night. These winds will continue to create dangerous seas and up to 3 feet of storm surge for many islands in the region.

The combination of rain and wind could cause issues for Puerto Rico’s vulnerable electrical infrastructure.

Puerto Rico officials activated the National Guard, canceled classes in public schools and warned Ernesto would cause widespread power outages given the fragile state of Puerto Rico’s power grid, the Associated Press reported. Crews are still rebuilding the grid after Hurricane Maria struck the island in September 2017 as a Category 4 storm.

“That’s a reality,” Juan Saca, president of Luma Energy, a private company that operates the transmission and distribution of power in Puerto Rico, told the AP.

Preparations need to be finalized before the storm arrives, Jaclyn Rothenberg, FEMA’s Public Affairs Director, urged Tuesday.

“The people of Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands are no strangers to storms,” Rothenburg told CNN. “They know how to prepare, but I know that there also are a lot of travelers – people that are visiting the islands during the summer for fun.”

With power outages a possibility, it’s important to have non-perishable food on hand, charge up any electronic devices and make a plan to keep medications that need refrigeration cool.

“It’s really important that people aren’t complacent, that they are taking the storm seriously and that they’re preparing for the impact,” Rothenberg said.

A gradual turn to the north is expected to begin Wednesday and pull Ernesto away from the Caribbean into the open Atlantic. Once over open water, Ernesto will strengthen even further.

How strong Ernesto gets will depend heavily on very warm ocean water and how potent storm-disrupting upper level winds become over the region. It’s possible Ernesto will become a major hurricane – Category 3 strength or greater – late this week.

But Ernesto’s track could shift depending on a number of factors, including when it is pulled northward. A later turn would mean the storm would impact areas farther west like Hispaniola or the southern Bahamas.

Ernesto could be a powerful hurricane by the weekend as it approaches Bermuda. It’s too early to know exactly how close Ernesto will come to Bermuda and how much rain and wind it’ll bring.

The island is expecting to see heavy rain from another weather system in the next few days. “Residents need to prepare now before conditions worsen. Time is of the essence,” Minister of National Security Michael Weeks said Tuesday.

Ernesto will have wide-reaching impacts later this week and this weekend despite a track somewhere over the open Atlantic.

The storm will churn up seas hundreds of miles away and could create dangerous rip currents for the US East Coast, the Bahamas and parts of the Caribbean into early next week.

FEMA only funding immediate storm response

With Ernesto bearing down on US territories, the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s disaster fund is in a deficit. It’s the second year in a row the fund has been depleted before the peak of hurricane season.

“This is, without a doubt, because of the increase in extreme weather events caused by climate change,” Rothenberg, the agency’s spokesperson, told CNN.

FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell shifted the agency into what’s known as immediate needs funding on August 7, Rothenberg told CNN. The agency is waiting for Congress to pass a $9 billion supplemental funding request to replenish the fund, but the House and Senate are in recess until September. It’s unclear when lawmakers will address the fund after they return.

Rothenberg stressed FEMA has enough resources to respond to impending disasters like Ernesto.

FEMA will continue to fund “search and rescue operations, being able to bring in equipment, generators, things like that,” Rothenberg told CNN, adding, “I don’t want the people of Puerto Rico and USVI to be worried about this at all.”

But on pause will be responses like long-term recovery from previous disasters, of which there’s no shortage. Through July, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration reported the US experienced 19 separate weather and climate disasters, with damage exceeding $1 billion – the second-highest amount for the first seven months of the year. It falls just behind a record set in 2023.

The NOAA tally doesn’t include devastating flooding from Hurricane Debby, which made landfall earlier this month.

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(CNN) — Tropical Storm Ernesto is steadily growing stronger as it slams the northern Caribbean with heavy rain, gusty winds and rough seas Tuesday, lashing the Virgin Islands and heading toward Puerto Rico.

Hurricane watches were in effect for the US and British Virgin Islands, Vieques and Culebra, as forecasters grew more concerned Ernesto could rapidly intensify into a dangerous hurricane thanks to very warm ocean water.

“Ernesto is expected to become a hurricane later tonight or early Wednesday to the north of the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico,” the National Hurricane Center said Tuesday evening.

Previously, it was forecast to reach hurricane-strength later during the day on Wednesday.

The storm’s maximum sustained winds increased by 25 mph to 65 mph over a 12-hour period from Tuesday morning to Tuesday evening. In order to meet the definition of rapid intensification, storms have to gain at least 35 mph of strength over a 24-hour period.

Ernesto’s center was moving over the Virgin Islands on Tuesday evening after tracking near or over Guadeloupe early Tuesday. It’s been on a collision course with the region since forming early Monday evening.

US National Weather Service meteorologists issued a flash flood warning for St. Croix in the US Virgin Islands until 4 a.m.

“Doppler radar indicated southern rainbands from Tropical Storm Ernesto producing heavy rain across the warned area,” the weather service said late Tuesday. “Between 1 and 2 inches of rain have fallen. Additional rainfall amounts of 2 to 3 inches are possible in the warned area. Flash flooding is ongoing or expected to begin shortly.”

Tropical storm-force winds extended up to 115 miles from Ernesto’s center and are delivering gusty winds to much of the region. A 65 mph gust at Saint Barthélemy – known commonly as St. Bart’s – occurred when Ernesto was about 100 miles away.

Ernesto’s wind and rain will spread over more of the region overnight Tuesday and Wednesday.

Tropical storm warnings are in effect for Puerto Rico and the Leeward Islands, including the US and British Virgin Islands. Ernesto’s strong wind gusts are capable of damaging some structures and taking down trees and power lines.

Drenching, potentially flooding rainfall looks to be the most significant threat over parts of the Caribbean this week. Heavy rain will persist for much of the Leeward Islands through Tuesday night but wet weather will linger into Wednesday.

A deluge of rain will begin for the US and British Virgin Islands Tuesday evening and reach Puerto Rico Tuesday night. The heaviest rain should cease over these areas late Wednesday.

Rainfall totals of 4 to 6 inches will be widespread, with up to 10 inches possible in parts of Puerto Rico. Flash flooding and mudslides are possible as a result, especially in the higher terrain areas of eastern and southern Puerto Rico.

Tropical storm-force winds will also pound areas within Ernesto’s path through at least Wednesday night. These winds will continue to create dangerous seas and up to 3 feet of storm surge for many islands in the region.

The combination of rain and wind could cause issues for Puerto Rico’s vulnerable electrical infrastructure.

Puerto Rico officials activated the National Guard, canceled classes in public schools and warned Ernesto would cause widespread power outages given the fragile state of Puerto Rico’s power grid, the Associated Press reported. Crews are still rebuilding the grid after Hurricane Maria struck the island in September 2017 as a Category 4 storm.

“That’s a reality,” Juan Saca, president of Luma Energy, a private company that operates the transmission and distribution of power in Puerto Rico, told the AP.

Preparations need to be finalized before the storm arrives, Jaclyn Rothenberg, FEMA’s Public Affairs Director, urged Tuesday.

“The people of Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands are no strangers to storms,” Rothenburg told CNN. “They know how to prepare, but I know that there also are a lot of travelers – people that are visiting the islands during the summer for fun.”

With power outages a possibility, it’s important to have non-perishable food on hand, charge up any electronic devices and make a plan to keep medications that need refrigeration cool.

“It’s really important that people aren’t complacent, that they are taking the storm seriously and that they’re preparing for the impact,” Rothenberg said.

A gradual turn to the north is expected to begin Wednesday and pull Ernesto away from the Caribbean into the open Atlantic. Once over open water, Ernesto will strengthen even further.

How strong Ernesto gets will depend heavily on very warm ocean water and how potent storm-disrupting upper level winds become over the region. It’s possible Ernesto will become a major hurricane – Category 3 strength or greater – late this week.

But Ernesto’s track could shift depending on a number of factors, including when it is pulled northward. A later turn would mean the storm would impact areas farther west like Hispaniola or the southern Bahamas.

Ernesto could be a powerful hurricane by the weekend as it approaches Bermuda. It’s too early to know exactly how close Ernesto will come to Bermuda and how much rain and wind it’ll bring.

The island is expecting to see heavy rain from another weather system in the next few days. “Residents need to prepare now before conditions worsen. Time is of the essence,” Minister of National Security Michael Weeks said Tuesday.

Ernesto will have wide-reaching impacts later this week and this weekend despite a track somewhere over the open Atlantic.

The storm will churn up seas hundreds of miles away and could create dangerous rip currents for the US East Coast, the Bahamas and parts of the Caribbean into early next week.

FEMA only funding immediate storm response

With Ernesto bearing down on US territories, the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s disaster fund is in a deficit. It’s the second year in a row the fund has been depleted before the peak of hurricane season.

“This is, without a doubt, because of the increase in extreme weather events caused by climate change,” Rothenberg, the agency’s spokesperson, told CNN.

FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell shifted the agency into what’s known as immediate needs funding on August 7, Rothenberg told CNN. The agency is waiting for Congress to pass a $9 billion supplemental funding request to replenish the fund, but the House and Senate are in recess until September. It’s unclear when lawmakers will address the fund after they return.

Rothenberg stressed FEMA has enough resources to respond to impending disasters like Ernesto.

FEMA will continue to fund “search and rescue operations, being able to bring in equipment, generators, things like that,” Rothenberg told CNN, adding, “I don’t want the people of Puerto Rico and USVI to be worried about this at all.”

But on pause will be responses like long-term recovery from previous disasters, of which there’s no shortage. Through July, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration reported the US experienced 19 separate weather and climate disasters, with damage exceeding $1 billion – the second-highest amount for the first seven months of the year. It falls just behind a record set in 2023.

The NOAA tally doesn’t include devastating flooding from Hurricane Debby, which made landfall earlier this month.

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(CNN) — At the end of July, Colorado became the latest US state to battle the spread of wildfires. Four blazes broke out, and while most are now contained, sustained hot, dry conditions this summer could spark more.

Around the same time, on August 1, a giant balloon was launched from the back of a pickup truck. Floating up to the stratosphere, the region between four and 31 miles above the Earth’s surface, it was able to capture high resolution photos of the Alexander Mountain fire, near Fort Collins, and measure temperature points on the ground.

The launch had been planned for months by the startup Urban Sky, which designs high-altitude balloons. It is the first of a handful of balloons due to be deployed in the next four weeks as part of a commercial trial looking to test the technology as an inexpensive way to detect, track, and ultimately prevent the spread of wildfires.

“The main goal is all about fire intelligence and early detection of wildfires,” Jared Leidich, co-founder and chief technology officer at Urban Sky, tells CNN.

Equipped with various infrared sensors, the balloons map vegetation density and moisture content on the ground, he explains. This data is processed in real time and combined with intelligence about dry lightning strikes and other ignition sources to come up with a “risk score” for certain locations, effectively pinpointing areas where a fire is likely to break out.

Another sensor measures heat on the ground. “Temperature is a really important distinction for early detection,” says Leidich. “Right now, most fires are detected just due to the presence of visible smoke … What you can’t tell from something that’s smoking is whether that is the end of a smoldering fire that is about to go out and probably harmless, versus a very hot building fire that is about to spread.”

All of this data is transmitted to computers on the ground via a satellite link, accessible to anyone with an internet connection. While still in the testing phase, Urban Sky plans to upload the data into a fire intelligence system: “So that within tens of seconds to minutes … it’ll become available to anybody that has access, including firefighters,” says Leidich, adding that it would help organizations prioritize how they deploy their often-limited resources.

Existing methods

A range of other technologies are already used to track wildfires. There are satellites, which orbit the exosphere, between 375 miles (600 kilometers) and 6,200 miles (10,000 kilometers) above Earth, and also provide imagery, but often of a much lower quality than one of Urban Sky’s balloons.

MODIS and VIIRIS satellites, the most commonly used for data on wildfires, “operate in the hundreds of meter resolution, so one pixel is about the size of a city block,” says Leidich. “We operate at 3.5-meter resolution, which means that one pixel is about the size of a tree.”

What’s more, satellites are constantly orbiting, so would only be able to pass over a wildfire area once or twice a day, whereas a balloon can hover over a specific area and send continuous updates. The operators use precise weather calculations to choose where to launch the balloon so that it drifts over its target, and once in the air, it is steered by a process of altitude control, where it moves up or down between different wind currents.

On the other end of the spectrum, there are drones, which are also used to obtain aerial images of wildfires. The level of detail is high, but the scanning rates are low, according to Leidich. “A drone might be able to scan something like one square kilometer an hour, and our system can scan something like 1,000 square kilometers an hour,” he says.

Balloons are somewhere in the middle. Leidich believes their closest market competitor is piloted aircraft, which can scan at a similar resolution and are also able to cover ground fairly quickly. However, not only can it be dangerous to fly above a blaze, but planes, like drones, have to contend with air traffic. Often, when there’s a wildfire, a temporary flight restriction zone is implemented around the area, he says: “They end up competing for space with all the other firefighting aircraft that are dropping water, moving personnel near the fire.”

In contrast, the stratosphere, where Urban Sky’s balloons typically fly at an altitude of around 60,000 feet (18,300 meters), is remarkably empty. It was once home to the supersonic airliner, Concorde, but today, mostly weather balloons occupy the near-space environment.

Another upside of Urban Sky’s balloons is cost, he says. While the startup has not yet set a price for the balloons, its goal is to make them as inexpensive and easy to use as possible. They are small and lightweight, reaching the size of a two-car garage when fully inflated and carrying a payload (which includes a sensor, camera, mini computer and radio modems) that weighs a maximum of 6 pounds (2.7 kilograms). Made from a tough, reusable material, they can be launched by one operator from the back of a pickup truck in less than 10 minutes, according to Leidich. Once they land, the balloons will be checked for leaks, patched if necessary and can be flown again.

Dr. Joshua Fisher, associate professor of environmental science and policy at California’s Chapman University, who has been taking part in NASA-funded research involving Urban Sky’s balloons, believes they “occupy a missing sweet spot of observation.”

“They can give us high-resolution continuous monitoring of wildfires, they are easy to deploy quickly in remote areas, and they come with the added bonus of providing a communications network for firefighters on the ground who are typically in a communications-sparse remote area,” he tells CNN in an email.

Ensuring real-time communication is crucial. The Colorado Center of Excellence for Advanced Technology Aerial Firefighting, which looks to improve firefighting practices across the state, has developed a mobile app that provides data to first responders, including real-time locations of firefighters, aircraft, fire perimeters, and lightning strikes. The challenge is maintaining a mobile connection, which is often lacking in remote areas where wildfires break out. Ben Miller, the center’s director, tells CNN that balloons could provide a connectivity solution, adding that it is currently involved in a project with another high-altitude balloon company, South Dakota-based Aerostar, which is looking to provide persistent cell coverage from the stratosphere.

Bigger picture

With climate change, wildfires are becoming bigger, more intense and more frequent. In Colorado, the climate has warmed by about 2 degrees Fahrenheit in the past 30 years and the top 10 biggest fires in the state’s history have all taken place since 2002.

Dr. Riley Reid, Urban Sky’s wildfire lead program manager, hopes that the balloons will not only help firefighters with early detection, but also help scientists understand the nature of wildfires more widely, as well as the potential use of “controlled burns” – the practice of intentionally setting fire to an area of vegetation to maintain forest health and prevent uncontrolled wildfires.

“Climate change is happening, there’s hotter and drier weather, longer fire seasons. The best way to tackle the problem is to get more accurate data,” she tells CNN.

Even in the aftermath of a fire, balloons can provide essential data on the impact of the burn. For instance, Urban Sky has previously worked with the US Geological Survey (USGS) to gather data on how much of the forest has burned and identify areas that are prone to landslides.

Within the next few months, the company plans to start commercializing the balloons, with support from a grant from the NASA FireSense Program. It wants to create a model for both selling the balloons outright and operating the balloons itself while selling data as a service.

“As wildfires continue to increase in frequency, intensity, magnitude and duration, such technology for managing wildfires could not come soon enough,” says Fisher.

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(CNN) — Tropical Storm Ernesto has formed in the Atlantic and is racing through the Caribbean islands and toward Puerto Rico with heavy rainfall, gusty winds and dangerous seas as a predicted hyperactive hurricane season ramps up.

The center of the storm is moving through the eastern Caribbean’s Leeward Islands Tuesday morning, the National Hurricane Center reported, with maximum winds around 40 mph. The storm was racing west at 20 mph, forecasters at the center said.

The fast-moving system is bringing tropical storm conditions – including potentially damaging winds and heavy rainfall – to the Leeward Islands Tuesday morning. Those conditions will spread across the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico by Tuesday evening.

Early track forecasts suggest Ernesto will not follow Debby’s continental US-bound path, and will instead curve north and intensify into a hurricane over very warm ocean water, potentially placing Bermuda in harm’s way, instead.

Tropical storm warnings are in effect for Puerto Rico and the Leeward Islands – an island chain in the northeast Caribbean including the US and British Virgin Islands. These warnings mean tropical storm conditions are coming soon. Tropical storms have sustained winds up to 73 mph with stronger gusts and are capable of damaging some structures and taking down trees and power lines. Additional watches and warnings could be be issued in the coming days.

Drenching rainfall looks to be the most significant threat over parts of the eastern and northern Caribbean this week. Rainfall totals of 4 to 6 inches will be widespread, with up to 10 inches possible in parts of Puerto Rico.

“Heavy rainfall may result in locally considerable flash flooding and mudslides,” the National Hurricane Center warned Monday.

Some of the heaviest rain could fall through Wednesday over the Leeward Islands and later Tuesday into Thursday for Puerto Rico.

Tropical storm-force winds will also pound areas within the system’s path from Tuesday onwards. These winds will create dangerous seas and up to 3 feet of storm surge for many islands in the region.

The combination of rain and wind could cause issues for Puerto Rico’s vulnerable electrical infrastructure.

A gradual turn to the north is expected to begin Wednesday, eventually pulling Ernesto away from the Caribbean and into the open Atlantic. Once over open water, Ernesto will strengthen and become a hurricane.

How strong Ernesto gets will depend heavily on very warm ocean water and how potent storm-disrupting upper level winds become over the region. It’s possible Ernesto becomes a major hurricane – Category 3 strength or greater – late this week.

But Ernesto’s track could shift depending on a number of factors, including when it is pulled northward. A later turn would mean the storm would impact areas farther west like Hispaniola or the southern Bahamas.

Ernesto could be a powerful hurricane by the weekend as it approaches Bermuda. It’s too early to know exactly how close Ernesto will come to Bermuda and how much rain and wind it’ll bring.

Ernesto’s will have wide-reaching impacts later this week and this weekend despite an uncertain final track somewhere over the open Atlantic.

The storm will churn up seas hundreds of miles away and could create dangerous rip currents for the US East Coast, the Bahamas and parts of the Caribbean into early next week.

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(CNN) — Fast-rising floodwaters from Debby’s extreme rainfall has overwhelmed communities and fueled a dangerous situation in the Northeast, damaging homes, inundating roads and forcing rescues.

Rare flash flood emergencies – the most severe flood alert – were issued early Friday afternoon for portions of southern New York and northern Pennsylvania, warning of life-threatening and catastrophic flooding. The floodwaters had trapped people in their homes and forced evacuations via boat and helicopter.

Debby has exited the Northeast but its heavy rain left a footprint of flooding and a trail of tornado damage spanning hundreds of miles.

Track the storm: Debby’s path

At least seven people have died in the Southeast since Debby crashed into Florida as a Category 1 storm on Monday. Its torrential downpours and strong winds have shredded homes, flooded neighborhoods and trapped people in cars, homes and boats – and sweltering heat across the region this weekend could make recovery efforts more difficult.

Here’s the latest:

• Helicopters help with rescues in Pennsylvania: Officials received hundreds of calls for help, including several who needed to be rescued by air from dangerous flooding in northern Pennsylvania’s Tioga County, county commissioner Shane Nickerson told CNN. Water rescues were ongoing Friday afternoon, with 80 to 90 people still needing to be evacuated from their homes. Emergency crews have also been caught up in the flooding. Helicopters and boats have been dispatched to assist in flood response efforts, a spokesperson for the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency told CNN. The Pennsylvania National Guard has been called in to help, according to Nickerson.

• Pennsylvania emergency declaration: Gov. Josh Shapiro took to X Friday evening to announce a disaster proclamation spanning 21 counties. The response will “make available more resources and cut red tape as we respond to severe storms and flooding from the remnants of Tropical Storm Debby,” Shapiro wrote.

• Three flash flood emergencies at once: Debby’s torrential rainfall triggered life-threatening flooding situations at the Pennsylvania-New York border Friday afternoon. A flash flood emergency was issued for southern New York’s Steuben County and another was issued shortly after for the nearby cities of Whitesville and Andover. Hundreds of homes are currently under a mandatory evacuation order, according to Steuben County Manager Jack Wheeler. “Numerous areas are flooded with people trapped in homes” in Steuben County, according to the National Weather Service. About 40 swift water rescues have been reported in the area, according to Wheeler, and the storm has damaged homes, businesses, roads and bridges. Evacuation orders were lifted for the villages of Addison and Canisteo later Friday because of receding waters. Another flash flood emergency was issued in the northern Pennsylvania town of Westfield. All of these areas were dealing with dangerous flooding, according to the National Weather Service.

• Life-threatening flooding in North Carolina: The Greensboro area was under a flash flood emergency Friday night after heavy rainfall. “Water rescues have already occurred. Seek higher ground now,” the National Weather Service in Raleigh said. Road and vehicle flooding resulted in multiple water rescues, the Greensboro Police Department said.

• Tornado and flash flood warnings for DC: Several tornado warnings were issued for the Washington, DC, area including one near Reagan National Airport just after 8:20 a.m. Friday. The warning was canceled less than 20 minutes later, but underscored how quickly Debby’s threats ramp up. Multiple flash flood warnings were issued for the greater area with rain falling at extreme rates of more than 1 inch every 20 minutes. Torrential rain quickly ponded on roadways and caused issues for public transportation in the area. Multiple lines of the district’s Metrorail service were experiencing delays due to flooding.

• Water rescues in waterlogged South Carolina: Debby fed gushing rain over parts of South Carolina overnight, prompting dozens of water rescues north of Charleston, according to local officials. At least 26 water rescues occurred in Berkeley County as of Friday morning, emergency management spokesperson Jenna-Lee Walls told CNN. Most were around Moncks Corner, about 30 miles north of Charleston, where a rare flash flood emergency was issued. The area received almost 9 inches of rain in six hours, with 2 to 3 feet of fast-moving water on roads, the National Weather Service said. No serious injuries were reported. Roadways in and around the area remained seriously flooded.

• States of emergency in Virginia, New York and New Jersey: Frederick County, Virginia, was under a state of emergency Friday morning due to flooding that forced multiple water rescues, officials said. The area is around 60 miles west of Washington and tucked into the Appalachians. Gov. Kathy Hochul declared a state of emergency for all of New York as the remnants of Debby impact the region. New Jersey will be under a state of emergency starting at 6 p.m., Lt. Gov Tahesha Way said in a post on X Friday.

• Death toll ticks upward: A 78-year-old woman was found dead Thursday after a tree fell on her trailer in Rockingham, North Carolina, which was under a tornado watch earlier that day, a county sheriff said. A man was found dead in North Carolina’s Wilson County after his home collapsed during a tornado spawned by Debby, a county official said. At least five other storm-related deaths have been reported: Four people in Florida and one in Georgia.

• Florida activates state response and water rescues: At least 130 people, including a family of five in a flooded apartment and four people and their pets on the roof of a barn, were rescued by Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission officers and evacuated due to high water conditions, according to a news release from Gov. Ron DeSantis. The Florida National Guard has mobilized over 2,300 guard members in response to Debby and has helped rescue at least 154 people. Efforts to restore power, clear debris and assist wildlife impacted by the storm are underway.

Residents displaced after homes flood

The drenching rains left homes inundated with water and took some residents by surprise.

Saravana Karthik told CNN affiliate WPVI that emergency rescue crews evacuated him and his family from their home in Avondale, Pennsylvania, by boat after more than five feet of water left his basement completely underwater.

“It’s completely dangerous to stay there because it’s fully underneath water,” Karthik said.

Disaster teams with the American Red Cross have opened shelters and are providing assistance to displaced residents impacted by the remnants of Debby.

“For right now, we’ve got food, we’ve got a place for them to stay and we’re taking care of their immediate needs,” Jennifer Graham, regional CEO for the American Red Cross told WPVI.

Across the state line, residents were also dealing with damage and flooded homes in New York’s Steuben County.

Ann Farkas, who lives in Canisteo, New York, told the Associated Press it was the first time her home has flooded since she moved there in 1976. Though the water has gone down, she now has to shovel out layers of thick silt and contend with repairs.

“Like a lot of people, I don’t have flood insurance, so I doubt my homeowner’s is going to cover any of this,” she told the Associated Press.

Three kids rescued from Raleigh creek

Debby has dumped more than a foot of rain over parts of Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas this week, triggering flooding that has prompted water rescues as some people became trapped in homes and vehicles as murky floodwaters rose around them.

Three children in Raleigh, North Carolina, were rescued Thursday after slipping into the rushing waters of a creek that had been fed by Debby’s rainfall, local fire officials said.

The children – 11-year-old Andrew; his 8-year-old sister, Evelyn; and their friend – told CNN affiliate WRAL they had been trying to cross the creek while playing but were caught off guard by the swift-moving water. When rescue personnel arrived, the kids were hanging on to a tree branch.

“It was very scary because the water – it was just rushing on and there were a bunch of sticks and they were hitting us. And it was really scary because at the end, (my friend) was barely holding on,” Evelyn told WRAL.

Another child who had safely crossed the creek was able to call 911. “The rescue team came just in time,” Evelyn said.

“These kids were very lucky today!” the Raleigh Fire Department said on X. “We know creeks & rivers will be high today, which makes them very dangerous. Please stay safe, Raleigh!”

Raleigh had seen 5.35 inches of rain from Debby as of Thursday night, and other parts of North Carolina have received more than a foot of rain, including more than 15 inches in Kings Grant and 11.94 inches in Wilmington.

CNN’s Rebekah Riess, Joe Sutton, Amanda Musa, Sharif Paget, Andy Rose and Monica Garrett contributed to this report.

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By Elizabeth Wolfe and Robert Shackelford, CNN

(CNN) — Debby weakened to a post-tropical cyclone Friday morning but it is still threatening to whip up flooding rains, damaging winds and tornadoes as it quickly moves north through the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast.

The storm had winds of 30 mph with stronger gusts early Friday and was expected to pick up speed as it moves north after hovering over the Carolinas for days, creating dangerous flood conditions in some areas.

More than 17 million people were under tornado watches Friday morning extending across parts of North Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia and Maryland, the Storm Prediction Center said.

Track the storm: Debby’s path

At least seven people have died in the Southeast since Debby crashed into Florida as a Category 1 storm on Monday. Its torrential downpours and heavy winds have shredded homes, flooded neighborhoods and trapped people in cars, homes and boats – and sweltering heat across the region this weekend could make recovery efforts more difficult.

Here’s the latest:

• Tornado watch spreads from North Carolina to Maryland: The Storm Prediction Center has issued a tornado watch until 7 a.m. Friday stretching across eastern North Carolina, central and eastern Virginia, eastern West Virginia and Maryland. The area includes the cities of Raleigh, Richmond, Baltimore and Washington, DC.

• Flash flood emergency in South Carolina: The National Weather Service issued a flash flood emergency early Friday for parts of South Carolina’s Berkeley, Charleston and Dorchester counties, noting that high water rescues and “widespread dangerous flash flooding is ongoing” in the city of Moncks Corner. The emergency was set to be in effect until 5:30 a.m. ET. While the bulk of the rainfall associated with Debby had moved to Virginia, a final band of heavy rainfall north of Charleston was trained over the same areas, overwhelming soils and waterways. The band could also bring flooding on its path into North Carolina early Friday.

• Death toll ticks upward: A 78-year-old woman was found dead Thursday after a tree fell on her trailer in Rockingham, North Carolina, which was under a tornado watch earlier that day, a county sheriff said. Earlier Thursday, a man was found dead in North Carolina’s Wilson County after his home collapsed during a tornado spawned by Debby, a county official said. At least five other storm-related deaths have been reported: Four people in Florida and one in Georgia.

• More than 35 million people under flood alerts: Though rainfall totals will be lower Friday compared to earlier this week – when Debby dumped more than a foot of rain on parts of the Southeast – the Northeast has a significant threat of flooding, especially in high-terrain areas. More than 35 million people are under some level of flood alert, stretching over 800 miles from South Carolina up to northern New York and Vermont.

• Where Debby is headed: The heaviest rainfall on Friday will spread from central Pennsylvania through central New York and into Vermont. Between 2 to 4 inches of rainfall are expected in the area, with some isolated higher amounts possible. Peak rainfall isn’t expected to hit New York City until after the evening commute hours. And by Saturday morning, the rainfall associated with Debby will quickly be exiting northern New England.

• Southeast sweats under triple-digit heat: Hazardous heat has been baking the Southeast in Debby’s wake and is expected to continue throughout the weekend, creating potentially miserable conditions for recovery efforts across the region. While high temperatures in the upper 80s and lower 90s are expected, the heat indices – how the body feels under combined heat and humidity – could exceed 110 degrees. The heat index on Friday could hit 112 degrees in Valdosta, Georgia, and 110 degrees in Jacksonville, Florida.

Three kids rescued from Raleigh creek amid Debby flooding

Debby has dumped more than a foot of rain over parts of Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas this week, triggering flooding that has prompted water rescues as some people became trapped in homes and vehicles as murky floodwaters rose around them.

Three children in Raleigh, North Carolina, were rescued Thursday after slipping into the rushing waters of a creek that had been fed by Debby’s rainfall, local fire officials said.

The children – 11-year-old Andrew; his 8-year-old sister, Evelyn; and their friend – told CNN affiliate WRAL they had been trying to cross the creek while playing but were caught off guard by the swift-moving water. When rescue personnel arrived, the kids were hanging on to a tree branch.

“It was very scary because the water – it was just rushing on and there were a bunch of sticks and they were hitting us. And it was really scary because at the end, (my friend) was barely holding on,” Evelyn told WRAL.

Another child who had safely crossed the creek was able to call 911. “The rescue team came just in time,” Evelyn said.

“These kids were very lucky today!” the Raleigh Fire Department said on X. “We know creeks & rivers will be high today, which makes them very dangerous. Please stay safe, Raleigh!”

Raleigh had seen 5.35 inches of rain from Debby as of Thursday night, and other parts of North Carolina have received more than a foot of rain, including more than 15 inches in Kings Grant and 11.94 inches in Wilmington.

CNN’s Sharif Paget contributed to this report.

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CNN

By Elizabeth Wolfe, Robert Shackelford and Mary Gilbert, CNN

(CNN) — After causing at least six deaths in the Southeast, Debby weakened to a tropical depression Thursday but remained a dangerous storm as it picked up speed, spreading its torrential rain and tornado threat north.

The center of the system was 45 miles east of Charlotte, North Carolina, on Thursday afternoon, but its impacts stretched from the Carolinas to southern Pennsylvania and New Jersey as it accelerated toward the Northeast.

A tornado watch was issued for parts of North Carolina to the DC-Baltimore region. Several tornado warnings were hoisted Thursday evening as the system triggered thunderstorms with embedded rotation, including one for an observed tornado near Wilmington, Delaware.

Flood watches and warnings were plastered up and down the Eastern Seaboard as downpours developed over areas already drenched by Debby’s multi-day rains. Flood warnings extended to the US-Canada border, with forecasts calling for several inches of rain in upstate New York, Vermont and New Hampshire through Saturday.

Debby’s shift to the Northeast comes after its death toll rose to six Thursday when a destructive tornado killed a man in Lucama, North Carolina. The tornado damaged homes and a school in the area, which is around 35 miles southeast of Raleigh.

Track the storm: Debby’s path

Since crashing into Florida as a Category 1 hurricane on Monday, Debby has dumped more than a foot of rain over parts of Florida, Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina. The deluges have engorged rivers, flooded roadways and trapped people in cars, homes and boats – and potentially dangerous heat is expected across the region in the coming days, threatening to complicate the recovery process.

Even more chaos is on the horizon as the storm, a reflection of the amplifying consequences of human-fueled climate change, heads toward the Northeast. Here’s the latest:

• Debby’s death toll climbs: One person is dead after a tornado spawned by Debby tore through part of North Carolina’s Wilson County in the earliest hours of Thursday morning, leaving behind damage to a middle school, a church and multiple homes. A man was killed after his home in the town of Lucama collapsed, a county spokesperson told CNN. At least four people in Florida and one in Georgia were also killed by Debby.

• At least a dozen tornadoes confirmed: Debby has whipped up at least a dozen tornadoes as of Thursday that have roared through parts of Florida, South Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia. A tornado in Snow Hill, North Carolina early Thursday was described as “large, extremely dangerous and potentially deadly.” A tornado watch is in effect through 8 p.m. ET for 6.8 million people in parts of eastern North Carolina and southern Virginia, including the cities of Raleigh, Virginia Beach and Richmond.

• Debby’s current path: The system will pick up speed as its center moves north and its impacts push into the Northeast. Debby will accelerate through Pennsylvania and New York Friday and move through New England by early Saturday afternoon, bringing heavy rain and flash flooding to a region drenched by storms earlier this week.

• Disaster declarations across the Southeast: President Joe Biden has approved disaster declarations for Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas – all of which have been pummeled by Debby this week. More than 700 Federal Emergency Management Agency personnel have been deployed to the Southeast, and search and rescue teams are on standby to assist as needed, the agency said Wednesday.

• Flash flood emergency: Debby’s torrential rainfall cut off one North Carolina town from its surrounding areas after up to 8 inches of rain fell in just a few hours Wednesday night, according to a rare flash flood emergency issued by the National Weather Service. Officials in Bladenboro – located in the southern part of the state – reported 3 foot deep floodwater.

• Triple-digit heat coming for Southeast: Potentially dangerous heat has been hovering over the Southeast in Debby’s wake and is expected to persist through the weekend as storm recovery continues. While high temperatures in the upper 80s and lower 90s are expected, the heat indices – how the body feels under combined heat and humidity – could exceed 110 degrees, including in Steinhatchee, Florida, near where Debby made its first landfall.

‘It’s like National Geographic in our backyard’

Debby’s deluge has been a clear illustration of the impact of global warming caused by fossil fuel pollution, which is causing storms to get wetter and strengthen more quickly. Debby, for instance, tracked through near-record warm waters in the Gulf of Mexico, which helped it rapidly intensify before making landfall as a hurricane in Florida.

As Debby has churned through the Southeast, the storm has left behind disastrous scenes. Homes have been shredded by winds and swamped by floodwaters, and roads have been washed out or submerged, creating hazardous conditions for impacted communities.

Three children were rescued by emergency crews from a flooded Marsh Creek in Raleigh after getting stuck while trying to cross the water on Thursday, CNN affiliate WRAL reported.

The children were part of a group of five who were riding bikes when they said they came across the creek. The children said the creek appeared to be calm, and so they attempted to cross it – two made it across, when suddenly the last three got caught in the surging waters.

An 11-year-old held onto a tree branch with his 8-year-old sister and their 10-year-old friend as they waited for rescuers, WRAL reported. They were rescued within five minutes of rescuers’ arrival, the station reported.

In South Carolina’s Lowcountry, a home in Bluffton has become an alligator’s paradise as floodwaters turned Adrienne LeBlanc’s yard into an inviting swampland.

Though LeBlanc is no stranger to alligators – often seeing them sunbathing in the distance – she was surprised to wake up after heavy rains Wednesday to discover her backyard had been invaded by alligators.

“It’s like National Geographic in our backyard right now,” LeBlanc told CNN. She counted eight alligators swimming around her house and saw a few of them wrestling.

“Jokingly I told my husband, ‘When I wake up tomorrow that bad boy is going to be in our bedroom,’” LeBlanc said.

After 17 years of living in Bluffton, LeBlanc said she has experienced this level of flooding once – when Hurricane Matthew made landfall in the state in 2016.

South Carolina hasn’t seen a named storm make landfall on its shores since Hurricane Ian’s arrival in 2022 as a Category 1 storm. The last named storm to track across the state in any fashion was Tropical Storm Idalia in August 2023.

This is a developing story and will be updated.

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By Tamara Hardingham-Gill, CNN

(CNN) — Cruise ships have doubled in size over the past two decades, a precedent that could lead to even bigger vessels plying our oceans in the future and bringing potential problems, a new report has warned.

The largest passenger vessels today are twice as large as they were in 2000, says a study conducted by European clean energy lobby group Transport and Environment (T&E), which warns of the environmental impact of the “rapidly” growing global cruise industry.

The report suggests that the biggest cruise ships setting sail in 2050 could be nearly eight times larger than the Titanic, the largest passenger ship in service when it set sail in 1912 (measuring 269 meters or about 883 feet), if the growth rate continues as it is.

“Today’s cruisezillas make the Titanic look like a small fishing boat,” Inesa Ulichina, sustainable shipping officer at T&E, said in a statement.

“How much bigger can these giants get? The cruise business is the fastest growing tourism sector and its emissions are quickly getting out of control.”

Cruise industry group takes issue with report

Cruise Lines International Association, the largest cruise industry trade association, takes issue with “multiple claims in the report which conflict with verified data,” the group said in a statement.

“Notably the size of ships (most are small- to mid-size) and the emissions data as published on the EU (MRV) database, which show that cruise lines have reduced emissions by 16% on average per ship over the past five years.”

The number of cruise ships has increased by 20-fold from 21 in 1970 to 515 today, according to T&E.

On its launch in 1999, Royal Caribbean’s Voyager of the Seas, which has a gross tonnage (GT) of 137,276, was the biggest cruise ship in the world.

The cruise line brand’s 1,198-foot Icon of the Seas, which has seven swimming pools and a record-breaking 17,000-square-foot water park, became the world’s biggest cruise ship — with a gross tonnage of 248,663 — when it launched in January 2024.

But the speed at which the cruising industry has boomed in recent years has come at a price, T&E says in its report.

Global emissions

It notes that CO2 emissions from cruise ships in Europe were almost 20% higher in 2022 than in 2019.

Cruise ships and other maritime vessels are thought to be responsible for nearly 3% of global greenhouse gas emissions each year, according to the International Maritime Organization.

While cruise ships are exempt from fuel duties, along with most corporate and consumer taxes, at present, the report points out that a possible 50 euros (about $54) tax on a “typical cruise journey ticket” could potentially bring in 1.6 billion euros (around $1.75 billion) globally.

CLIA added in its statement that “the majority (60%) of all cruise ships sailing today – and scheduled to be in service well into the next decade – are small- to- mid-size ships and are part of a global fleet that is more energy efficient than ever.”

CLIA has committed its members to reaching net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.

The industry plans to achieve that goal, it says, by “increasingly using more sustainable fuels as they become available in addition to investing billions in ships with cutting-edge technologies that make them the most environmentally focused ships in history — and that’s regardless of the size of the ship.”

CNN has reached out to Royal Caribbean Group for comment.

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CNN

By Elizabeth Wolfe and Robert Shackelford, CNN

(CNN) — After causing at least six deaths in the Southeast, Debby has weakened to a tropical depression and is still dumping rain and threatening tornadoes Thursday afternoon, according to the National Hurricane Center.

Tropical Depression Debby is now centered 45 miles east of Charlotte, North Carolina, according to the center’s 5 p.m. advisory. Debby is moving to the north-northwest at 10 mph and is expected to quickly accelerate over the next 24 hours.

“Heavy rainfall across portions of the Carolinas is expected to persist through today along with areas of considerable flooding,” the hurricane center said. “Heavy rainfall will also result in considerable to locally catastrophic flooding impacts across portions of the Mid-Atlantic states and Northeast through Saturday morning.”

The death toll from the storm rose to six after it spawned a destructive tornado Thursday that killed a man in Lucama, North Carolina. The tornado damaged homes and a school in the area, which is around 35 miles southeast of Raleigh.

Track the storm: Debby’s path

Since crashing into Florida as a Category 1 hurricane on Monday, Debby has dumped more than a foot of rain over parts of Florida, Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina. The deluges have engorged rivers, flooded roadways and trapped people in cars, homes and boats – and potentially dangerous heat is expected across the region in the coming days, threatening to complicate the recovery process.

Even more chaos is on the horizon as the storm, a reflection of the amplifying consequences of human-fueled climate change, heads toward the Northeast. Here’s the latest:

• Debby’s death toll climbs: One person is dead after a tornado spawned by Debby tore through part of North Carolina’s Wilson County in the earliest hours of Thursday morning, leaving behind damage to a middle school, a church and multiple homes. A man was killed after his home in the town of Lucama collapsed, a county spokesperson told CNN. At least four people in Florida and one in Georgia were also killed by Debby.

• At least a dozen tornadoes confirmed: Debby has whipped up at least a dozen tornadoes as of Thursday that have roared through parts of Florida, South Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia. A tornado in Snow Hill, North Carolina early Thursday was described as “large, extremely dangerous and potentially deadly.” A tornado watch is in effect through 8 p.m. ET for 6.8 million people in parts of eastern North Carolina and southern Virginia, including the cities of Raleigh, Virginia Beach and Richmond.

• Flash flood emergency: Debby’s torrential rainfall cut off one North Carolina town from its surrounding areas after up to 8 inches of rain fell in just a few hours Wednesday night, according to a rare flash flood emergency issued by the National Weather Service. Officials in Bladenboro – located in the southern part of the state – reported 3 foot deep floodwater.

• Debby’s current path: The system will pick up additional speed and lose more strength Thursday as it moves through North Carolina and into northern Virginia by Friday morning. Debby will accelerate through Pennsylvania and New York Friday and move through New England by early Saturday afternoon, bringing heavy rain and flash flooding to a region drenched by storms earlier this week.

• ‘Be prepared for a deluge,’ North Carolina governor says: Gov. Roy Cooper warned residents Wednesday to brace for major rain and flooding. “All North Carolinians across our state need to be prepared for a deluge,” Cooper said, describing the incoming threat as “more rain than most of us see in a month, or even several months.” Rainfall totals across the state surpassed a foot by early Thursday afternoon. Dangerous rip currents and storm surge up to 3 feet will persist along the Carolinas’ coasts Thursday.

• Disaster declarations across the Southeast: President Joe Biden has approved disaster declarations for Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas – all of which have been pummeled by Debby this week. More than 700 Federal Emergency Management Agency personnel have been deployed to the Southeast, and search and rescue teams are on standby to assist as needed, the agency said Wednesday.

• Georgia dam at risk of ‘imminent failure’: A dam in Bulloch County, Georgia – about 50 miles northwest of Savannah – is in danger of “imminent failure” as a result of Debby’s torrential rainfall, the National Weather Service in Charleston, South Carolina, said. Parts of the county have already suffered serious flooding, requiring water rescues in a mobile home park. But if the dam breaks, communities immediately downstream are at the greatest risk for more flooding and may be asked to evacuate.

• Triple-digit heat in store for Southeast: Potentially dangerous heat has been hovering over the Southeast in Debby’s wake and is expected to persist through the weekend as storm recovery continues. While high temperatures in the upper 80s and lower 90s are expected, the heat indices – how the body feels under combined heat and humidity – could exceed 110 degrees, including in Steinhatchee, Florida, near where Debby made its first landfall.

‘It’s like National Geographic in our backyard’

Debby’s deluge has been a clear illustration of the impact of global warming caused by fossil fuel pollution, which is causing storms to get wetter and strengthen more quickly. Debby, for instance, tracked through near-record warm waters in the Gulf of Mexico, which helped it rapidly intensify before making landfall as a hurricane in Florida.

As Debby has churned through the Southeast, the storm has left behind disastrous scenes. Homes have been shredded by winds and swamped by floodwaters, and roads have been washed out or submerged, creating hazardous conditions for impacted communities.

In South Carolina’s Lowcountry, a home in Bluffton has become an alligator’s paradise as floodwaters turned Adrienne LeBlanc’s yard into an inviting swampland.

Though LeBlanc is no stranger to alligators – often seeing them sunbathing in the distance – she was surprised to wake up after heavy rains Wednesday to discover her backyard had been invaded by alligators.

“It’s like National Geographic in our backyard right now,” LeBlanc told CNN. She counted eight alligators swimming around her house and saw a few of them wrestling.

“Jokingly I told my husband, ‘When I wake up tomorrow that bad boy is going to be in our bedroom,’” LeBlanc said.

After 17 years of living in Bluffton, LeBlanc said she has experienced this level of flooding once – when Hurricane Matthew made landfall in the state in 2016.

South Carolina hasn’t seen a named storm make landfall on its shores since Hurricane Ian’s arrival in 2022 as a Category 1 storm. The last named storm to track across the state in any fashion was Tropical Storm Idalia in August 2023.

This is a developing story and will be updated.

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CNN’s Andy Rose, Sharif Paget, Mary Gilbert, Kara Mihm, Christina Zdanowicz and CNN meteorologist Taylor Ward contributed to this report.

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(CNN) — After causing at least six deaths in the Southeast, Debby weakened to a tropical depression Thursday but remained a dangerous storm as it picked up speed, spreading its torrential rain and tornado threat north.

The center of the system was 45 miles east of Charlotte, North Carolina, on Thursday afternoon, but its impacts stretched from the Carolinas to southern Pennsylvania and New Jersey as it accelerated toward the Northeast.

A tornado watch was issued for parts of North Carolina to the DC-Baltimore region. Several tornado warnings were hoisted Thursday evening as the system triggered thunderstorms with embedded rotation, including one for an observed tornado near Wilmington, Delaware.

Flood watches and warnings were plastered up and down the Eastern Seaboard as downpours developed over areas already drenched by Debby’s multi-day rains. Flood warnings extended to the US-Canada border, with forecasts calling for several inches of rain in upstate New York, Vermont and New Hampshire through Saturday.

Debby’s shift to the Northeast comes after its death toll rose to six Thursday when a destructive tornado killed a man in Lucama, North Carolina. The tornado damaged homes and a school in the area, which is around 35 miles southeast of Raleigh.

Track the storm: Debby’s path

Since crashing into Florida as a Category 1 hurricane on Monday, Debby has dumped more than a foot of rain over parts of Florida, Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina. The deluges have engorged rivers, flooded roadways and trapped people in cars, homes and boats – and potentially dangerous heat is expected across the region in the coming days, threatening to complicate the recovery process.

Even more chaos is on the horizon as the storm, a reflection of the amplifying consequences of human-fueled climate change, heads toward the Northeast. Here’s the latest:

• Debby’s death toll climbs: One person is dead after a tornado spawned by Debby tore through part of North Carolina’s Wilson County in the earliest hours of Thursday morning, leaving behind damage to a middle school, a church and multiple homes. A man was killed after his home in the town of Lucama collapsed, a county spokesperson told CNN. At least four people in Florida and one in Georgia were also killed by Debby.

• At least a dozen tornadoes confirmed: Debby has whipped up at least a dozen tornadoes as of Thursday that have roared through parts of Florida, South Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia. A tornado in Snow Hill, North Carolina early Thursday was described as “large, extremely dangerous and potentially deadly.” A tornado watch is in effect through 8 p.m. ET for 6.8 million people in parts of eastern North Carolina and southern Virginia, including the cities of Raleigh, Virginia Beach and Richmond.

• Debby’s current path: The system will pick up speed as its center moves north and its impacts push into the Northeast. Debby will accelerate through Pennsylvania and New York Friday and move through New England by early Saturday afternoon, bringing heavy rain and flash flooding to a region drenched by storms earlier this week.

• Disaster declarations across the Southeast: President Joe Biden has approved disaster declarations for Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas – all of which have been pummeled by Debby this week. More than 700 Federal Emergency Management Agency personnel have been deployed to the Southeast, and search and rescue teams are on standby to assist as needed, the agency said Wednesday.

• Flash flood emergency: Debby’s torrential rainfall cut off one North Carolina town from its surrounding areas after up to 8 inches of rain fell in just a few hours Wednesday night, according to a rare flash flood emergency issued by the National Weather Service. Officials in Bladenboro – located in the southern part of the state – reported 3 foot deep floodwater.

• Triple-digit heat coming for Southeast: Potentially dangerous heat has been hovering over the Southeast in Debby’s wake and is expected to persist through the weekend as storm recovery continues. While high temperatures in the upper 80s and lower 90s are expected, the heat indices – how the body feels under combined heat and humidity – could exceed 110 degrees, including in Steinhatchee, Florida, near where Debby made its first landfall.

‘It’s like National Geographic in our backyard’

Debby’s deluge has been a clear illustration of the impact of global warming caused by fossil fuel pollution, which is causing storms to get wetter and strengthen more quickly. Debby, for instance, tracked through near-record warm waters in the Gulf of Mexico, which helped it rapidly intensify before making landfall as a hurricane in Florida.

As Debby has churned through the Southeast, the storm has left behind disastrous scenes. Homes have been shredded by winds and swamped by floodwaters, and roads have been washed out or submerged, creating hazardous conditions for impacted communities.

Three children were rescued by emergency crews from a flooded Marsh Creek in Raleigh after getting stuck while trying to cross the water on Thursday, CNN affiliate WRAL reported.

The children were part of a group of five who were riding bikes when they said they came across the creek. The children said the creek appeared to be calm, and so they attempted to cross it – two made it across, when suddenly the last three got caught in the surging waters.

An 11-year-old held onto a tree branch with his 8-year-old sister and their 10-year-old friend as they waited for rescuers, WRAL reported. They were rescued within five minutes of rescuers’ arrival, the station reported.

In South Carolina’s Lowcountry, a home in Bluffton has become an alligator’s paradise as floodwaters turned Adrienne LeBlanc’s yard into an inviting swampland.

Though LeBlanc is no stranger to alligators – often seeing them sunbathing in the distance – she was surprised to wake up after heavy rains Wednesday to discover her backyard had been invaded by alligators.

“It’s like National Geographic in our backyard right now,” LeBlanc told CNN. She counted eight alligators swimming around her house and saw a few of them wrestling.

“Jokingly I told my husband, ‘When I wake up tomorrow that bad boy is going to be in our bedroom,’” LeBlanc said.

After 17 years of living in Bluffton, LeBlanc said she has experienced this level of flooding once – when Hurricane Matthew made landfall in the state in 2016.

South Carolina hasn’t seen a named storm make landfall on its shores since Hurricane Ian’s arrival in 2022 as a Category 1 storm. The last named storm to track across the state in any fashion was Tropical Storm Idalia in August 2023.

This is a developing story and will be updated.

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CNN’s Andy Rose, Sharif Paget, Kara Mihm, Christina Zdanowicz and CNN meteorologist Taylor Ward contributed to this report.

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CANUTILLO, Texas (KVIA) -- As the Borderland continues to experience above-average temperatures, Dr. Cynthia Saenz, owner of Canutillo Veterinary Hospital, emphasizes the importance of keeping pets safe from the heat.

Located at 7109 Bosque Rd, Canutillo, TX 79835, Dr. Saenz's clinic is a resource for pet owners concerned about pets' health and heat-related issues.

With 2023 breaking records for consecutive triple-digit days—44 and counting—Dr. Saenz warns that pets can suffer from heat stroke, just like humans.

Signs of overheating include excessive panting, drooling, vomiting, diarrhea, and anxiety, which can lead to collapse in severe cases.

To prevent heat-related emergencies, Dr. Saenz recommends keeping pets indoors during peak sun hours.

If they must go outside, use protective gear like booties to shield their paws from hot pavement.

If a pet shows signs of heat stroke, do not pour water directly on them; instead, she says, immediately take them to the nearest animal ER or hospital.

For more information or to schedule a consultation, contact Canutillo Veterinary Hospital at 915-243-2970.

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(CNN) — Once a tropical storm strengthens into a hurricane, it earns a category designation on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale: 1 through 5.

Knowing about each category can help predict what damage an incoming storm may inflict – and how best to prepare.

The categories are defined by wind speed, with a storm of Category 3, 4, or 5 considered a major hurricane. And damage is exponential as wind speed increases, meaning a strong Category 3 storm could do up to 60 times as much damage as a weak Category 1 storm.

But it’s not always as simple as ticking up from 1 to 5.

Hurricanes carry many risks not adequately conveyed by the wind speed-based scale, including:

• Storm surge – when winds push water onto shore – which accounted for about half of hurricane fatalities between 1963 and 2012, according to a 2014 report in the Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society;

• Rainfall-induced flooding and mudslides, which made up about a quarter of such deaths, the report shows;

• A storm’s forward speed: Slower storms are more destructive, with strong gusts or rainstorms that pound the same areas for hours or days;

• Tornadoes, which can spawn by the dozen from any hurricane.

Still, the National Hurricane Center uses categories – set by sustained wind speed – to estimate possible property damage from hurricanes. Here’s what’s expected in each:

Category 1: 74-95 mph

Sustained winds are enough to blow shingles off roofs and damage gutters and vinyl siding, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said.

These winds also can uproot trees and bring down branches, causing power outages and more property damage. They can damage power lines directly, too.

• Hurricane Nicole, a Category 1 storm, made landfall in November 2022 along Florida’s East Coast and impacted places still then recovering from Hurricane Ian less than two months earlier. Nicole caused significant beach erosion and caused more than $1 billion in damages, according to NOAA.

Category 2: 96-110 mph

Sustained winds could cause as much as 20 times the damage as those of a Category 1 storm, including extensive damage to a home’s roof and siding.

Numerous trees and power lines will most likely be damaged, blocking roads, damaging property and knocking out power for days, if not weeks.

• Hurricane Delta struck Louisiana’s coast in October 2020 with winds of 100 mph and made landfall just 12 miles east of where Hurricane Laura had come ashore just six weeks earlier. Delta blew away many tarps on roofs damaged by Laura and did extensive damage to trees, homes and businesses. It also dumped more than a foot of rain across South Louisiana, creating prolonged flooding.

Category 3: 111-129 mph

Now in “major hurricane” territory, wind damage is much more widespread. Well-built homes and other buildings could suffer major damage, and roofs will sustain heavy damage. Numerous trees will be damaged or uprooted.

“Electricity and water will be unavailable for several days to weeks after the storm passes,” NOAA said.

• Hurricane Katrina was a Category 3 storm that struck during the busy 2005 Atlantic hurricane season. It first made landfall along the Florida coast at Category 1 strength before rapidly intensifying in the Gulf of Mexico to Category 5. It weakened before making landfall in southeast Louisiana as a Category 3 storm.

Storm surge was estimated at close to 20 feet along the Mississippi-Alabama border, and estimated winds reached as high as 140 mph near Grand Isle, Louisiana. Levee breaches sent water flooding into much of New Orleans, forcing people onto rooftops for rescue. Katrina killed more than 1,800 people, left as many as 600,000 households displaced for at least a month and became the most costly storm on record, according to NOAA.

Category 4: 130-156 mph

Catastrophic damage can result from these winds. Well-built homes will be heavily damaged, with most of the roof blown away. Trees and power lines will be down. Water and power services could be out for months, with the hardest-hit places uninhabitable for weeks.

• Hurricane Ian made landfall in September 2022 along the southwest Florida coast as a Category 4 storm. It killed 150 people and became the costliest storm on record in Florida. Its enormous size and snail’s pace made it exceedingly destructive, with 150-mph winds that battered coastal communities for hours.

Ian brought record storm surge to Fort Myers and Naples, estimated at 10 to 15 feet, NOAA said. For days after landfall, the storm dumped unprecedented volumes of rain across Florida, triggering tremendous river flooding in the weeks that followed.

Category 5: 157 mph or greater

These are the most powerful storms on Earth. Most well-built homes will be destroyed, many stripped to the foundation. Power outages could last for months, and the areas hardest hit could be uninhabitable for months.

• Hurricane Andrew in August 1992 was one of the worst storms to ever hit the United States, devastating a whole region after it made landfall near Homestead, Florida. Andrew grew from a Category 1 storm to a Category 5 storm in just 36 hours, with maximum winds near Homestead around 165 mph, according to NOAA.

At the time, Andrew was the “costliest and most damaging hurricane ever to hit the United States,” the National Weather Service said.

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(CNN) — When a hurricane undergoes rapid intensification, its maximum sustained winds increase by at least 35 mph in 24 hours or less – driving up the danger the storm could pose to life and property.

“Rapid intensification is associated with a sharp increase in intensity in a short amount of time, and consequently, the threat posed by the storm significantly increases,” said Phil Klotzbach, a research scientist in the Department of Atmospheric Science at Colorado State University.

Most major hurricanes – Category 3 or higher – undergo rapid intensification at some point, a 2022 study shows. Of 104 such storms in the North Atlantic since 1990, 88% fit the bill, said Klotzbach, a study coauthor.

More and more hurricanes over the period underwent extreme rapid intensification, with at least a 57-mph increase in maximum sustained winds over 24 hours, the study found. While the uptick “may be simply due to better observations, we think that most of the trend is actually real,” Klotzbach said, noting wind speed forecasting has improved in recent years.

Because heat helps fuel storms, higher sea surface temperatures and high ocean heat content play huge roles in rapid intensification. So as the climate crisis forces up ocean temperatures, rapid intensification becomes more likely, pushing storms to explode at a rapid pace into deadly hurricanes, scientists say.

Scientists are confident hurricanes are on track to get increasingly stronger with rising mean global temperatures, meaning more rapid intensification – along with increased rainfall – the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report from 2022 shows.

Major hurricanes that sustained rapid intensification

Hurricane Ian in 2022 went from having roughly 115-mph to 160-mph maximum sustained winds in 24 hours, leading to higher storm surge and more damage. It weakened slightly before making landfall as a monster storm, devastating Florida’s coast.

Hurricane Ida in 2021 went through a remarkable 65-mph jump in maximum sustained winds in just 24 hours before hitting Louisiana as a Category 4 hurricane. It tied the record with Laura in 2020 as the strongest hurricane to make landfall in the state.

Hurricane Dorian in 2019 was the second-strongest Atlantic hurricane of modern times and reached the highest category on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale. It underwent rapid intensification twice before becoming the strongest hurricane ever to make landfall in the Bahamas, where it lingered for days and left catastrophic damage.

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By Jennifer Gray, CNN Meteorologist

(CNN) — When a hurricane undergoes rapid intensification, its maximum sustained winds increase by at least 35 mph in 24 hours or less – driving up the danger the storm could pose to life and property.

“Rapid intensification is associated with a sharp increase in intensity in a short amount of time, and consequently, the threat posed by the storm significantly increases,” said Phil Klotzbach, a research scientist in the Department of Atmospheric Science at Colorado State University.

Most major hurricanes – Category 3 or higher – undergo rapid intensification at some point, a 2022 study shows. Of 104 such storms in the North Atlantic since 1990, 88% fit the bill, said Klotzbach, a study coauthor.

More and more hurricanes over the period underwent extreme rapid intensification, with at least a 57-mph increase in maximum sustained winds over 24 hours, the study found. While the uptick “may be simply due to better observations, we think that most of the trend is actually real,” Klotzbach said, noting wind speed forecasting has improved in recent years.

Because heat helps fuel storms, higher sea surface temperatures and high ocean heat content play huge roles in rapid intensification. So as the climate crisis forces up ocean temperatures, rapid intensification becomes more likely, pushing storms to explode at a rapid pace into deadly hurricanes, scientists say.

Scientists are confident hurricanes are on track to get increasingly stronger with rising mean global temperatures, meaning more rapid intensification – along with increased rainfall – the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report from 2022 shows.

Major hurricanes that sustained rapid intensification

Hurricane Ian in 2022 went from having roughly 115-mph to 160-mph maximum sustained winds in 24 hours, leading to higher storm surge and more damage. It weakened slightly before making landfall as a monster storm, devastating Florida’s coast.

Hurricane Ida in 2021 went through a remarkable 65-mph jump in maximum sustained winds in just 24 hours before hitting Louisiana as a Category 4 hurricane. It tied the record with Laura in 2020 as the strongest hurricane to make landfall in the state.

Hurricane Dorian in 2019 was the second-strongest Atlantic hurricane of modern times and reached the highest category on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale. It underwent rapid intensification twice before becoming the strongest hurricane ever to make landfall in the Bahamas, where it lingered for days and left catastrophic damage.

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EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) -- In celebration of National Breastfeeding Awareness Month, mothers in El Paso are sharing their experiences and the importance of breastfeeding.

Stephanie Ortega, a mother of three, found success breastfeeding her youngest child with the help of lactation consultant Veronica Munoz after struggling with her older children.

Munoz emphasizes the recommendation to breastfeed for up to two years, highlighting its critical role in infant health.

Both women agree that a mother's body adapts to meet her baby's unique needs.

For support or to learn more about classes offered by Veronica Munoz, contact her at (915) 263-5487.

The post Local lactation consultant supports mothers during Breastfeeding Awareness Month appeared first on KVIA.

By Elisa Raffa, Ashley R. Williams, Dakin Andone and Brandon Miller, CNN

(CNN) — Hurricane Debby, the fourth named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season and the second named hurricane, has become a Category 1 storm, according to the National Hurricane Center.

The storm, located about 100 miles west-northwest of Tampa, Florida, with maximum sustained winds of 75 mph, is expected to strengthen even further before making landfall in Florida’s Big Bend region Monday morning.

“Debby is then expected to move slowly across northern Florida and southern Georgia Monday and Tuesday, and be near the Georgia coast by Tuesday night,” the hurricane center said in its 11 p.m. advisory.

Debby began dumping rain on parts of the state earlier Sunday as a tropical storm and is expected to unload potentially historic amounts of rainfall over the southeastern United States.

Authorities in Florida, Georgia and South Carolina are urging residents to prepare for heavy rain and possible flooding as the storm makes its way through the Gulf.

The cities of Savannah, Georgia, and Charleston, South Carolina, could both be drenched with a month’s worth of rain in a single day — and perhaps even an entire summer’s worth of rain over the course of the storm.

Hundreds of thousands of college and K-12 students will be impacted as several schools in the storm’s projected path have canceled classes Monday, including the University of Florida and Georgia Southern University.

Dangerous conditions had already begun Sunday off Florida’s coast. Two boaters were rescued after their vessel lost its sail amid 15- to 20-foot seas and 50-knot winds, the US Coast Guard in Tampa Bay said.

Debby’s arrival continues to cement an exceptionally early start to the hurricane season after Hurricane Beryl tore through the Caribbean and Texas last month as the earliest Category 5 Atlantic hurricane on record. The second Atlantic hurricane does not occur, on average, until August 26.

Hurricane conditions are expected to arrive by Monday morning, with the outer bands of the storm system making their way on shore during the day Sunday. The storm is forecast to reach the coast of the Big Bend around midday Monday, at which point Debby is expected to then crawl across northern Florida and southern Georgia throughout the day and into Tuesday, the hurricane center said.

The main threat will be flooding, both from storm surges up to 10 feet and heavy rainfall. Freshwater flooding, which is caused by rainfall, has become the deadliest aspect of tropical systems in the last decade, according to research conducted by the hurricane center — a threat made more dangerous as the world warms from fossil fuel pollution.

Track the Storm: Spaghetti models and more maps here

The strengthening storm tracking up the Florida Peninsula’s western coast prompted county and state officials to issue a string of voluntary and mandatory evacuation orders as the hurricane center posted hurricane watches and warnings across several parts of the state, including near Tampa and the Big Bend region.

A hurricane warning has been issued for the Florida Gulf coast from Suwanee River to Yankeetown, the hurricane center said.

Tropical storm and storm surge watches and warnings have also been issued for parts of Florida, coastal Georgia and parts of South Carolina. The hurricane center upgraded a tropical storm watch to a warning for the area west of Indian Pass to Mexico Beach, Florida, in its 5 p.m. ET update, and a tropical storm warning was also issued for the eastern coasts of Florida and Georgia from Ponte Vedra Beach to the Savannah River.

A tornado watch has also been issued for much of the Florida Peninsula and parts of southern Georgia until until Monday morning, covering more than 13 million people, including the cities of Tallahassee, Jacksonville, Tampa and Orlando.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp and South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster have declared states of emergency for their states in advance of the storm’s arrival. DeSantis on Sunday said in a news conference that he’d activated the Florida National Guard so it would be poised to assist with humanitarian needs as well as search and rescue.

DeSantis called on residents to finish their preparations and to brace for power outages, “particularly in parts of the state like here in Tallahassee.”

“There’s going to be a lot of trees that are going to fall down. You’re going to have debris. You are going to have power interruption,” the governor said, “so just prepare for that.”

More than 78,000 customers were already without power in Florida by Sunday night, according to PowerOutage.us.

DeSantis also urged Florida residents to avoid floodwaters ahead of the storm’s potentially significant flooding impacts, particularly in North Central Florida.

“Please do not drive your vehicles through flooded streets. The number one way we have fatalities as a result of floods is people trying to drive through the floodwater,” he said.

The docks of Indian Mound Park in Sarasota County, south of Tampa, were underwater by 2 p.m. ET Sunday, the county government posted on X. A little farther south, near Fort Myers, waters from the Gulf began spilling over onto coastal roadways and prompted some road closures after Debby’s outer bands dumped rain along the shoreline Sunday afternoon, Charlotte County emergency management officials said.

President Joe Biden on Sunday approved a disaster declaration for Florida, the White House announced, authorizing federal resources to respond to any disaster relief efforts.

Storm expected to intensify over Gulf

The slower Debby moves and the longer it sits over warm waters, the more likely the storm is to intensify. Studies have shown tropical systems are slowing down over time, making them more likely to produce greater rainfall totals over a given area.

Oceans are also getting warmer and supercharging storms, pumping them full of moisture. A 2022 study published in the journal Nature Communications found climate change increased hourly rainfall rates in tropical storms by 5 to 10% and in hurricanes by 8 to 11%.

“Conditions are favorable for strengthening over the Gulf of Mexico with warm sea surface temperatures and light shear. Intensification is likely to be slow during the first 12–24 hours, then proceed at a faster rate after the cyclone develops an organized inner core,” the National Hurricane Center said of Debby.

By early Monday, Debby is expected to move into the Apalachee Bay area of Florida as it moves northward over the Gulf, according to the Weather Prediction Center.

The Apalachee Bay area, which includes parts of Taylor, Jefferson, Wakulla, and Franklin counties, can expect to get drenched with heavy rain from Debby on Sunday, increasing the possibility of flash flooding in several spots, the hurricane center said.

In the meantime, county officials have urged residents in communities along Florida’s Gulf Coast to evacuate ahead of the storm. Mandatory evacuation orders are in effect for parts of Franklin, Citrus and Levy counties, with voluntary orders issued in Hernando, Taylor and Pasco counties.

“I am worried about the aftermath and seeing how much damage we get (and) how we are going to fix it,” Sue Colson, the mayor of Cedar Key in Levy County, told CNN Sunday. The city sits on the island of Way Key in the Gulf of Mexico, about four miles off the coast. She cited high amounts of anticipated rain as well as the threat of storm surge.

“That is always concerning when you are a low-lying island in the middle of the Gulf,” she said.

On Saturday, Florida Highway Patrol knocked on doors to tell residents to consider leaving, Colson said. Residents were continuing to finish their preparations on Sunday morning.

“I think everybody needs to make wise decisions for themselves and not endanger others by endangering yourself,” she said. “If you’re endangering yourself, you are endangering others, because then they have to rescue you.”

Heavy rain could linger for days

As a slow-moving Debby churns along the Georgia-Carolina coastline heading into the new week, it could lead to seemingly endless amounts of rain for days, with totals potentially reaching over 2 feet.

The heaviest rain amounts could even top 30 inches or more, depending on how long Debby meanders, with some forecast models showing the storm could linger through at least Thursday. “This rainfall will likely result in areas of considerable flash and urban flooding, with significant river flooding expected,” the National Hurricane Center said.

Such exceptional rainfall would challenge state records for rain from a tropical cyclone: In Georgia, the record is 27.85 inches from 1994’s Alberto, while South Carolina’s record is 23.63 inches from Florence in 2018.

A warmer atmosphere holds more moisture and can dump heavier rain. Warmer oceans can fuel stronger hurricanes, packing a punch with higher storm surge thanks to sea-level rise.

With an uptick in the intensity forecast comes an increase in forecasted storm surge, which occurs when ocean water is pushed inland by the onshore winds of a hurricane. Storm surge flooding above ground could rise to 6 to 10 feet along Florida’s Big Bend, and coastal Georgia and South Carolina could see surges reach 2 to 4 feet.

Tampa Bay is expecting 2 to 4 feet of storm surge. Marco Island and other areas of southwest Florida will see 1 to 3 feet of storm surge.

Warmer air and ocean temperatures fueled by human-induced climate change can lead to wetter tropical systems.

The North Florida region nestled between the Panhandle and the rest of the state’s peninsula took a devastating hit last August from Category 3 Hurricane Idalia, and now faces a new threat from Debby.

Editor’s note: Affected by the storm? Use CNN’s lite site for low bandwidth.

The-CNN-Wire
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CNN’s Robert Shackelford, Allison Chinchar, Elliana Hebert, Raja Razek, Sam Fossum and Melissa Alonso contributed to this report.

The post Debby strengthens to a Category 1 hurricane ahead of Florida landfall as Southeast braces for potentially historic rain appeared first on KVIA.

(CNN) — Hurricane Debby, the fourth named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season and the second named hurricane, has become a Category 1 storm, according to the National Hurricane Center.

The storm, located about 100 miles west-northwest of Tampa, Florida, with maximum sustained winds of 75 mph, is expected to strengthen even further before making landfall in Florida’s Big Bend region Monday morning.

“Debby is then expected to move slowly across northern Florida and southern Georgia Monday and Tuesday, and be near the Georgia coast by Tuesday night,” the hurricane center said in its 11 p.m. advisory.

Debby began dumping rain on parts of the state earlier Sunday as a tropical storm and is expected to unload potentially historic amounts of rainfall over the southeastern United States.

Authorities in Florida, Georgia and South Carolina are urging residents to prepare for heavy rain and possible flooding as the storm makes its way through the Gulf.

The cities of Savannah, Georgia, and Charleston, South Carolina, could both be drenched with a month’s worth of rain in a single day — and perhaps even an entire summer’s worth of rain over the course of the storm.

Hundreds of thousands of college and K-12 students will be impacted as several schools in the storm’s projected path have canceled classes Monday, including the University of Florida and Georgia Southern University.

Dangerous conditions had already begun Sunday off Florida’s coast. Two boaters were rescued after their vessel lost its sail amid 15- to 20-foot seas and 50-knot winds, the US Coast Guard in Tampa Bay said.

Debby’s arrival continues to cement an exceptionally early start to the hurricane season after Hurricane Beryl tore through the Caribbean and Texas last month as the earliest Category 5 Atlantic hurricane on record. The second Atlantic hurricane does not occur, on average, until August 26.

Hurricane conditions are expected to arrive by Monday morning, with the outer bands of the storm system making their way on shore during the day Sunday. The storm is forecast to reach the coast of the Big Bend around midday Monday, at which point Debby is expected to then crawl across northern Florida and southern Georgia throughout the day and into Tuesday, the hurricane center said.

The main threat will be flooding, both from storm surges up to 10 feet and heavy rainfall. Freshwater flooding, which is caused by rainfall, has become the deadliest aspect of tropical systems in the last decade, according to research conducted by the hurricane center — a threat made more dangerous as the world warms from fossil fuel pollution.

Track the Storm: Spaghetti models and more maps here

The strengthening storm tracking up the Florida Peninsula’s western coast prompted county and state officials to issue a string of voluntary and mandatory evacuation orders as the hurricane center posted hurricane watches and warnings across several parts of the state, including near Tampa and the Big Bend region.

A hurricane warning has been issued for the Florida Gulf coast from Suwanee River to Yankeetown, the hurricane center said.

Tropical storm and storm surge watches and warnings have also been issued for parts of Florida, coastal Georgia and parts of South Carolina. The hurricane center upgraded a tropical storm watch to a warning for the area west of Indian Pass to Mexico Beach, Florida, in its 5 p.m. ET update, and a tropical storm warning was also issued for the eastern coasts of Florida and Georgia from Ponte Vedra Beach to the Savannah River.

A tornado watch has also been issued for much of the Florida Peninsula and parts of southern Georgia until until Monday morning, covering more than 13 million people, including the cities of Tallahassee, Jacksonville, Tampa and Orlando.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp and South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster have declared states of emergency for their states in advance of the storm’s arrival. DeSantis on Sunday said in a news conference that he’d activated the Florida National Guard so it would be poised to assist with humanitarian needs as well as search and rescue.

DeSantis called on residents to finish their preparations and to brace for power outages, “particularly in parts of the state like here in Tallahassee.”

“There’s going to be a lot of trees that are going to fall down. You’re going to have debris. You are going to have power interruption,” the governor said, “so just prepare for that.”

More than 78,000 customers were already without power in Florida by Sunday night, according to PowerOutage.us.

DeSantis also urged Florida residents to avoid floodwaters ahead of the storm’s potentially significant flooding impacts, particularly in North Central Florida.

“Please do not drive your vehicles through flooded streets. The number one way we have fatalities as a result of floods is people trying to drive through the floodwater,” he said.

The docks of Indian Mound Park in Sarasota County, south of Tampa, were underwater by 2 p.m. ET Sunday, the county government posted on X. A little farther south, near Fort Myers, waters from the Gulf began spilling over onto coastal roadways and prompted some road closures after Debby’s outer bands dumped rain along the shoreline Sunday afternoon, Charlotte County emergency management officials said.

President Joe Biden on Sunday approved a disaster declaration for Florida, the White House announced, authorizing federal resources to respond to any disaster relief efforts.

Storm expected to intensify over Gulf

The slower Debby moves and the longer it sits over warm waters, the more likely the storm is to intensify. Studies have shown tropical systems are slowing down over time, making them more likely to produce greater rainfall totals over a given area.

Oceans are also getting warmer and supercharging storms, pumping them full of moisture. A 2022 study published in the journal Nature Communications found climate change increased hourly rainfall rates in tropical storms by 5 to 10% and in hurricanes by 8 to 11%.

“Conditions are favorable for strengthening over the Gulf of Mexico with warm sea surface temperatures and light shear. Intensification is likely to be slow during the first 12–24 hours, then proceed at a faster rate after the cyclone develops an organized inner core,” the National Hurricane Center said of Debby.

By early Monday, Debby is expected to move into the Apalachee Bay area of Florida as it moves northward over the Gulf, according to the Weather Prediction Center.

The Apalachee Bay area, which includes parts of Taylor, Jefferson, Wakulla, and Franklin counties, can expect to get drenched with heavy rain from Debby on Sunday, increasing the possibility of flash flooding in several spots, the hurricane center said.

In the meantime, county officials have urged residents in communities along Florida’s Gulf Coast to evacuate ahead of the storm. Mandatory evacuation orders are in effect for parts of Franklin, Citrus and Levy counties, with voluntary orders issued in Hernando, Taylor and Pasco counties.

“I am worried about the aftermath and seeing how much damage we get (and) how we are going to fix it,” Sue Colson, the mayor of Cedar Key in Levy County, told CNN Sunday. The city sits on the island of Way Key in the Gulf of Mexico, about four miles off the coast. She cited high amounts of anticipated rain as well as the threat of storm surge.

“That is always concerning when you are a low-lying island in the middle of the Gulf,” she said.

On Saturday, Florida Highway Patrol knocked on doors to tell residents to consider leaving, Colson said. Residents were continuing to finish their preparations on Sunday morning.

“I think everybody needs to make wise decisions for themselves and not endanger others by endangering yourself,” she said. “If you’re endangering yourself, you are endangering others, because then they have to rescue you.”

Heavy rain could linger for days

As a slow-moving Debby churns along the Georgia-Carolina coastline heading into the new week, it could lead to seemingly endless amounts of rain for days, with totals potentially reaching over 2 feet.

The heaviest rain amounts could even top 30 inches or more, depending on how long Debby meanders, with some forecast models showing the storm could linger through at least Thursday. “This rainfall will likely result in areas of considerable flash and urban flooding, with significant river flooding expected,” the National Hurricane Center said.

Such exceptional rainfall would challenge state records for rain from a tropical cyclone: In Georgia, the record is 27.85 inches from 1994’s Alberto, while South Carolina’s record is 23.63 inches from Florence in 2018.

A warmer atmosphere holds more moisture and can dump heavier rain. Warmer oceans can fuel stronger hurricanes, packing a punch with higher storm surge thanks to sea-level rise.

With an uptick in the intensity forecast comes an increase in forecasted storm surge, which occurs when ocean water is pushed inland by the onshore winds of a hurricane. Storm surge flooding above ground could rise to 6 to 10 feet along Florida’s Big Bend, and coastal Georgia and South Carolina could see surges reach 2 to 4 feet.

Tampa Bay is expecting 2 to 4 feet of storm surge. Marco Island and other areas of southwest Florida will see 1 to 3 feet of storm surge.

Warmer air and ocean temperatures fueled by human-induced climate change can lead to wetter tropical systems.

The North Florida region nestled between the Panhandle and the rest of the state’s peninsula took a devastating hit last August from Category 3 Hurricane Idalia, and now faces a new threat from Debby.

Editor’s note: Affected by the storm? Use CNN’s lite site for low bandwidth.

The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2024 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.

CNN’s Robert Shackelford, Allison Chinchar, Elliana Hebert, Raja Razek, Sam Fossum and Melissa Alonso contributed to this report.

The post Debby strengthens to a Category 1 hurricane ahead of Florida landfall as Southeast braces for potentially historic rain appeared first on KVIA.

By Nouran Salahieh, Eric Zerkel, Mary Gilbert and Elisa Raffa, CNN

(CNN) — Tropical Storm Debby has sustained winds of 45 mph and is located about 250 miles south of Tampa, Florida, according to the National Hurricane Center’s 11 p.m. ET Saturday update on the storm.

The storm is moving northwest at about 14 mph and is expected to gradually turn toward the right and slow down, moving northward on Sunday and gradually northeastward Sunday night and Monday, according to the hurricane center.

The latest forecast calls for the storm to intensify into a Category 1 hurricane with 75 mph winds just before landfall Monday morning in Florida’s Big Bend region.

“Strengthening is expected as Debby crosses the Gulf of Mexico, and the system is likely to be at or near hurricane strength when it reaches the Florida Gulf Coast,” the hurricane center said.

The United States Air Force Reserve and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Hurricane Hunters were en route to Debby Saturday evening following the storm’s intensification into a tropical storm in the southeastern Gulf of Mexico, according to the National Hurricane Center.

Hurricane warnings remained in effect for the Florida Gulf Coast from the Suwannee River to the Ochlockonee River Saturday evening, including the entire Big Bend Region.

A hurricane watch was issued earlier Saturday, from Yankeetown, above Crystal River, northward and around the Big Bend region to Indian Pass on the Florida Panhandle.

Track the Storm: Spaghetti models and more maps here

The Big Bend area is still recovering from a devastating blow by Category 3 Hurricane Idalia last August as it prepares for a new threat from Debby.

Other alerts warning of tropical storm conditions over the next 48 hours span the entire western Florida coast south of the Big Bend and include Tampa, Sarasota, Fort Myers and Naples. A storm surge warning stretches from Aripeka, about 45 miles northwest of Tampa, up to the mouth of the Aucilla River.

A tropical storm warning also remained in effect Saturday for the Florida Keys from the Seven Mile Bridge westward, according to the hurricane center.

The hurricane center said the storm system became better organized by late Saturday morning as it moved toward Florida and landfall. “Heavy rainfall will likely result in locally considerable flash and urban flooding across portions of Florida and the coastal areas of the Southeast this weekend through Thursday morning.”

“Hurricane conditions are possible in the hurricane watch area by Sunday night, with tropical storm conditions expected to begin on Sunday,” the hurricane center said. “Tropical storm conditions are expected to spread northward over the tropical storm warning areas this evening and continuing through Sunday.”

A tornado or two is also possible across the Florida Keys and the western Florida Peninsula through Saturday night, according to the hurricane center. A radar-indicated tornado prompted a warning in Broward County late Saturday.

“Very Intense” rainfall is expected in southwest Florida on Saturday and a widespread 3 to 5 inches of rain could fall, according to the Weather Prediction Center. The intense rain will be potent enough to cause flash flooding, even in marshy areas of the state more capable of handling excess water.

“After landfall, weakening steering currents should cause the cyclone to slow down while it moves northeastward or eastward over parts of northern Florida and Georgia,” the National Hurricane Center reported. Debby will slow and stall thanks to the lack of steering, leading to possibly prolific amounts of heavy rain.

As Debby just sits and spins along the Georgia-Carolina coastline going into the workweek, it could dump a widespread 6 to 12 inches of rain.

The heaviest rain totals could even top 18 inches or more depending on how long Debby meanders and some forecast models have Debby lingering through at least Thursday. The National Hurricane Center added: “This rainfall will likely result in areas of considerable flash and urban flooding, with significant river flooding expected.”

The storm is forecast to continue to strengthen through the weekend and up to landfall while tracking through the Gulf of Mexico parallel to the western coast of Florida.

“This is a life-threatening situation. Persons located within these areas should take all necessary actions to protect life and property from rising water and the potential for other dangerous conditions,” the hurricane center said. “Promptly follow evacuation and other instructions from local officials.”

Cedar Key was slammed by Idalia in 2023; the storm surge then was 8 to 12 feet in Big Bend.

Shifts in the storm’s exact track and strength are still possible over the next 48 hours, but a key factor in the increasing chances for a hurricane is how much time the system spends over record-warm water in the eastern Gulf of Mexico.

Sea surface temperatures in the Gulf of Mexico are approaching records, currently in the middle to upper 80s. Some water temperatures are even approaching the lower 90s off the coast of Tampa Bay. Warm water is fuel for storms to strengthen and potentially rapidly intensify, a phenomenon becoming more likely as global temperatures rise because of fossil fuel pollution.

Forecasters shifted the storm’s track to the west and believe the storm will spend more time over water now.

“The westward shift to the track forecast now also keeps the system over the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico longer, giving the system additional time to potentially strengthen,” the hurricane center said. “It is important to note that because of the forecast track being parallel to the west coast of Florida, the location and timing of a potential landfall cannot be pinned down at this time.”

Where and when the storm comes ashore and how strong it is at that time will affect the risk of “life-threatening” storm surge.

Up to 5 feet of storm surge is possible in parts of the Big Bend and up to 4 feet is possible from Bonita Beach north through Tampa Bay.

No matter its strength, torrential, flooding rain will be the most significant impact from the storm, especially with the system forecast to slow down after landfall.

Storm could stall over the Southeast

After landfall Monday, the storm is forecast to track to the northeast over portions of northern Florida and southern Georgia.

But the atmospheric components that help steer and push storms along are forecast to breakdown and cause future-Debby to slow significantly while over the Southeast early next week.

The flood threat increases dramatically with slower storms, as they linger over the same areas and dump repeated bouts of heavy rain. Five to 10 inches of rain – potentially more – is forecast over coastal portions of Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina.

As a result, the risk of flooding rainfall was increased to a level 3 of 4 over the coasts of Georgia and South Carolina, including Savannah and Charleston, for Monday into Tuesday.

It’s also possible this risk level will increase to a level 4 of 4 depending on the future track of the storm, the Weather Prediction Center said.

Freshwater flooding – flooding caused by rainfall – has become the deadliest aspect of tropical systems in the last decade, according to research conducted by the National Hurricane Center.

A world warming due to fossil fuel pollution is making this potential threat more dangerous. Studies also have shown tropical systems are slowing down over time, which means they’re more likely to produce greater rainfall totals over a given area.

Oceans are also getting warmer and supercharging storms, pumping them full of moisture. A 2022 study published in the journal Nature Communications found climate change increased hourly rainfall rates in tropical storms by 5 to 10% and in hurricanes by 8 to 11%.

Florida prepares for deluge

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has declared a state of emergency for 54 of the state’s 67 counties to mobilize resources as the storm churned toward the Sunshine State.

“Floridians are encouraged to monitor weather conditions, listen to all orders from local officials, create disaster preparedness plans, and stock disaster supply kits with food, water, and other necessities for their households,” the governor’s office said Friday.

Local governments have started putting out advisories. Citrus, Levy and Dixie counties have issued mandatory evacuation orders in certain low-lying areas and for some residents living in manufactured homes or RVs. Voluntary evacuation notices have been announced in other areas of both counties, along with Pasco and Taylor Counties.

Sandbag distribution began Friday for residents in several communities in the Orlando and Tampa metros. Multiple counties in the state’s panhandle – including Escambia, Okaloosa and Santa Rosa – started distributing sandbags Thursday.

“You still have some time to put your disaster supply kit together,” Hurricane Center Director Michael Brennan said. “Make sure you have multiple days of food, water, prescription medicines. Keep your gas tank full, cash on hand, and keep batteries. Make sure your phone’s charged and make sure you have a battery powered radio.”

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp also declared a state of emergency Saturday ahead of Debby’s possible impacts.

“As the state prepares for a major storm system early this coming week, we urge all Georgians to take precautions to keep their families and property safe. I’ve issued a State of Emergency through Thursday, August 8,” Kemp said in a post on X.

The-CNN-Wire
™ & © 2024 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.

CNN’s Taylor Ward, Allison Chinchar, Elliana Hebert, Sarah Dewberry, Raja Razek, Paradise Afshar and Joe Sutton contributed to this report.

The post Tropical Storm Debby forms in the Gulf of Mexico, expected to reach hurricane strength before landfall in Florida appeared first on KVIA.

(CNN) — Tropical Storm Debby has sustained winds of 45 mph and is located about 250 miles south of Tampa, Florida, according to the National Hurricane Center’s 11 p.m. ET Saturday update on the storm.

The storm is moving northwest at about 14 mph and is expected to gradually turn toward the right and slow down, moving northward on Sunday and gradually northeastward Sunday night and Monday, according to the hurricane center.

The latest forecast calls for the storm to intensify into a Category 1 hurricane with 75 mph winds just before landfall Monday morning in Florida’s Big Bend region.

“Strengthening is expected as Debby crosses the Gulf of Mexico, and the system is likely to be at or near hurricane strength when it reaches the Florida Gulf Coast,” the hurricane center said.

The United States Air Force Reserve and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Hurricane Hunters were en route to Debby Saturday evening following the storm’s intensification into a tropical storm in the southeastern Gulf of Mexico, according to the National Hurricane Center.

Hurricane warnings remained in effect for the Florida Gulf Coast from the Suwannee River to the Ochlockonee River Saturday evening, including the entire Big Bend Region.

A hurricane watch was issued earlier Saturday, from Yankeetown, above Crystal River, northward and around the Big Bend region to Indian Pass on the Florida Panhandle.

Track the Storm: Spaghetti models and more maps here

The Big Bend area is still recovering from a devastating blow by Category 3 Hurricane Idalia last August as it prepares for a new threat from Debby.

Other alerts warning of tropical storm conditions over the next 48 hours span the entire western Florida coast south of the Big Bend and include Tampa, Sarasota, Fort Myers and Naples. A storm surge warning stretches from Aripeka, about 45 miles northwest of Tampa, up to the mouth of the Aucilla River.

A tropical storm warning also remained in effect Saturday for the Florida Keys from the Seven Mile Bridge westward, according to the hurricane center.

The hurricane center said the storm system became better organized by late Saturday morning as it moved toward Florida and landfall. “Heavy rainfall will likely result in locally considerable flash and urban flooding across portions of Florida and the coastal areas of the Southeast this weekend through Thursday morning.”

“Hurricane conditions are possible in the hurricane watch area by Sunday night, with tropical storm conditions expected to begin on Sunday,” the hurricane center said. “Tropical storm conditions are expected to spread northward over the tropical storm warning areas this evening and continuing through Sunday.”

A tornado or two is also possible across the Florida Keys and the western Florida Peninsula through Saturday night, according to the hurricane center. A radar-indicated tornado prompted a warning in Broward County late Saturday.

“Very Intense” rainfall is expected in southwest Florida on Saturday and a widespread 3 to 5 inches of rain could fall, according to the Weather Prediction Center. The intense rain will be potent enough to cause flash flooding, even in marshy areas of the state more capable of handling excess water.

“After landfall, weakening steering currents should cause the cyclone to slow down while it moves northeastward or eastward over parts of northern Florida and Georgia,” the National Hurricane Center reported. Debby will slow and stall thanks to the lack of steering, leading to possibly prolific amounts of heavy rain.

As Debby just sits and spins along the Georgia-Carolina coastline going into the workweek, it could dump a widespread 6 to 12 inches of rain.

The heaviest rain totals could even top 18 inches or more depending on how long Debby meanders and some forecast models have Debby lingering through at least Thursday. The National Hurricane Center added: “This rainfall will likely result in areas of considerable flash and urban flooding, with significant river flooding expected.”

The storm is forecast to continue to strengthen through the weekend and up to landfall while tracking through the Gulf of Mexico parallel to the western coast of Florida.

“This is a life-threatening situation. Persons located within these areas should take all necessary actions to protect life and property from rising water and the potential for other dangerous conditions,” the hurricane center said. “Promptly follow evacuation and other instructions from local officials.”

Cedar Key was slammed by Idalia in 2023; the storm surge then was 8 to 12 feet in Big Bend.

Shifts in the storm’s exact track and strength are still possible over the next 48 hours, but a key factor in the increasing chances for a hurricane is how much time the system spends over record-warm water in the eastern Gulf of Mexico.

Sea surface temperatures in the Gulf of Mexico are approaching records, currently in the middle to upper 80s. Some water temperatures are even approaching the lower 90s off the coast of Tampa Bay. Warm water is fuel for storms to strengthen and potentially rapidly intensify, a phenomenon becoming more likely as global temperatures rise because of fossil fuel pollution.

Forecasters shifted the storm’s track to the west and believe the storm will spend more time over water now.

“The westward shift to the track forecast now also keeps the system over the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico longer, giving the system additional time to potentially strengthen,” the hurricane center said. “It is important to note that because of the forecast track being parallel to the west coast of Florida, the location and timing of a potential landfall cannot be pinned down at this time.”

Where and when the storm comes ashore and how strong it is at that time will affect the risk of “life-threatening” storm surge.

Up to 5 feet of storm surge is possible in parts of the Big Bend and up to 4 feet is possible from Bonita Beach north through Tampa Bay.

No matter its strength, torrential, flooding rain will be the most significant impact from the storm, especially with the system forecast to slow down after landfall.

Storm could stall over the Southeast

After landfall Monday, the storm is forecast to track to the northeast over portions of northern Florida and southern Georgia.

But the atmospheric components that help steer and push storms along are forecast to breakdown and cause future-Debby to slow significantly while over the Southeast early next week.

The flood threat increases dramatically with slower storms, as they linger over the same areas and dump repeated bouts of heavy rain. Five to 10 inches of rain – potentially more – is forecast over coastal portions of Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina.

As a result, the risk of flooding rainfall was increased to a level 3 of 4 over the coasts of Georgia and South Carolina, including Savannah and Charleston, for Monday into Tuesday.

It’s also possible this risk level will increase to a level 4 of 4 depending on the future track of the storm, the Weather Prediction Center said.

Freshwater flooding – flooding caused by rainfall – has become the deadliest aspect of tropical systems in the last decade, according to research conducted by the National Hurricane Center.

A world warming due to fossil fuel pollution is making this potential threat more dangerous. Studies also have shown tropical systems are slowing down over time, which means they’re more likely to produce greater rainfall totals over a given area.

Oceans are also getting warmer and supercharging storms, pumping them full of moisture. A 2022 study published in the journal Nature Communications found climate change increased hourly rainfall rates in tropical storms by 5 to 10% and in hurricanes by 8 to 11%.

Florida prepares for deluge

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has declared a state of emergency for 54 of the state’s 67 counties to mobilize resources as the storm churned toward the Sunshine State.

“Floridians are encouraged to monitor weather conditions, listen to all orders from local officials, create disaster preparedness plans, and stock disaster supply kits with food, water, and other necessities for their households,” the governor’s office said Friday.

Local governments have started putting out advisories. Citrus, Levy and Dixie counties have issued mandatory evacuation orders in certain low-lying areas and for some residents living in manufactured homes or RVs. Voluntary evacuation notices have been announced in other areas of both counties, along with Pasco and Taylor Counties.

Sandbag distribution began Friday for residents in several communities in the Orlando and Tampa metros. Multiple counties in the state’s panhandle – including Escambia, Okaloosa and Santa Rosa – started distributing sandbags Thursday.

“You still have some time to put your disaster supply kit together,” Hurricane Center Director Michael Brennan said. “Make sure you have multiple days of food, water, prescription medicines. Keep your gas tank full, cash on hand, and keep batteries. Make sure your phone’s charged and make sure you have a battery powered radio.”

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp also declared a state of emergency Saturday ahead of Debby’s possible impacts.

“As the state prepares for a major storm system early this coming week, we urge all Georgians to take precautions to keep their families and property safe. I’ve issued a State of Emergency through Thursday, August 8,” Kemp said in a post on X.

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By Mary Gilbert and Taylor Ward, CNN Meteorologists

(CNN) — A tropical storm warning has been issued and a state of emergency declared in parts of Florida in anticipation of Tropical Storm Debby – a storm that hasn’t yet formed but could unleash multiple days of heavy, flooding rainfall to the state and the southeast United States starting this weekend.

The system has 30 mph winds and has been designated Potential Tropical Cyclone Four by the National Hurricane Center as it comes together over parts of Cuba and the southern Bahamas Friday.

Track the Storm: Spaghetti models and more maps here

It’s forecast to become a tropical depression by Saturday morning, once it emerges out over the water between Cuba and Florida, and strengthen into Tropical Storm Debby by Saturday evening.

Tropical storm watches and warnings have been extended northward in Florida, according to the 5 p.m. ET advisory from the National Hurricane Center.

The tropical storm warning has been extended along the west coast of the Florida peninsula from Bonita Beach to Boca Grande. Meanwhile, the tropical storm watch has been extended northward from Aripeka to the mouth of the Suwannee River.

Parts of the Florida Keys and parts of the Central Florida coast are also under a tropical storm watch, with officials urging residents there to prepare for tropical storm conditions within the next 48 hours. The watch includes Fort Myers, Cape Coral and Tampa Bay.

The storm’s exact track and strength are still uncertain. How much time the system spends over record-warm water in the eastern Gulf of Mexico will determine how strong it becomes.

It will track parallel to Florida’s Gulf Coast for some time this weekend and strengthen as it does so, before curving east and making landfall. The system’s strength would be limited if it moves more quickly over Florida.

“Since the forecast track is almost parallel to the west coast of the Florida Peninsula and the southeast coast of the US, only a small change in the track could lead to large changes in which land areas receive any landfalls and the biggest impacts,” the National Hurricane Center cautioned Friday.

Where and when the storm comes ashore and how strong it is at that time will affect the risk of storm surge. For now, up to 3 feet of storm surge is possible this weekend along the coast from South Florida to north of Tampa Bay.

No matter its strength, torrential, flooding rain will be the most significant impact from the storm, especially if the system were to slow down, a possible scenario.

The flood threat prompted Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis to declare a state of emergency. The order was issued Thursday for 54 of the state’s 67 counties to mobilize state and local resources ahead of the storm.

Sandbag distribution began Friday for residents in several communities in the Orlando and Tampa metros. Multiple counties in the state’s panhandle – including Escambia, Okaloosa and Santa Rosa – started distributing sandbags Thursday.

A level 2 of 4 risk of flooding rainfall is in place Saturday for much of South Florida as the system organizes just off the coast, according to the Weather Prediction Center.

“Very intense” rainfall rates of 2.5 to 3 inches per hour are possible within the heaviest storms in the system’s outer rain bands Saturday, the WPC warned. Rainfall rates this potent are enough to cause flash flooding, even in marshy areas of the state more capable of handling excess water.

The risk to life and property would increase considerably if these intense storms reach the Miami area. Up to 20 inches of rain deluged South Florida in a very short window in early July and produced extremely dangerous flash flooding across the greater Miami metro, resulting in a couple hundred water rescues.

The level 2 of 4 risk of flooding rainfall will expand over much of the state and reach into other portions of Georgia and the Carolinas Sunday.

Exactly when and where torrential downpours set up outside of Florida will depend on the system’s ultimate track, but heavy rain is possible as early as Sunday afternoon. It’s also possible that this risk level will increase – especially in Florida – once the system’s track comes into further focus.

Heavy rain will continue to pound parts of the Southeast early next week, especially if, instead of tracking steadily along the Florida Gulf Coast and making landfall, the system slows down and stalls over one region – potentially around Florida’s Big Bend.

Rainfall totals of 4 to 8 inches are possible through Monday over much of Florida and the coasts of Georgia and the Carolinas. But if the system happens to stall, rainfall totals could increase dramatically.

Freshwater flooding – flooding caused by rainfall – has become the deadliest aspect of tropical systems in the last decade, according to research conducted by the National Hurricane Center.

A world warming due to fossil fuel pollution is making this potential threat more dangerous. Studies have also shown tropical systems are slowing down over time, which means they’re more likely produce greater rainfall totals over a given area.

Oceans are also getting warmer and supercharging storms, pumping them full of moisture. A 2022 study published in the journal Nature Communications found climate change increased hourly rainfall rates in tropical storms by 5 to 10% and in hurricanes by 8 to 11%.

CNN’s Sara Smart contributed to this report.

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(CNN) — A tropical storm warning has been issued and a state of emergency declared in parts of Florida in anticipation of Tropical Storm Debby – a storm that hasn’t yet formed but could unleash multiple days of heavy, flooding rainfall to the state and the southeast United States starting this weekend.

The system has 30 mph winds and has been designated Tropical Depression Four by the National Hurricane Center as it comes together over parts of Cuba and the southern Bahamas Friday. It became organized enough to be classified as a tropical depression Friday, according to the 11 p.m. advisory from the hurricane center.

Track the Storm: Spaghetti models and more maps here

The storm is expected to strengthen into Tropical Storm Debby by Saturday evening.

Tropical storm watches and warnings have been extended northward in Florida, according to the 5 p.m. ET advisory from the National Hurricane Center.

The tropical storm warning has been extended along the west coast of the Florida peninsula from Bonita Beach to Boca Grande. Meanwhile, the tropical storm watch has been extended northward from Aripeka to the mouth of the Suwannee River.

Parts of the Florida Keys and parts of the Central Florida coast are also under a tropical storm watch, with officials urging residents there to prepare for tropical storm conditions within the next 48 hours. The watch includes Fort Myers, Cape Coral and Tampa Bay.

The storm’s exact track and strength are still uncertain. How much time the system spends over record-warm water in the eastern Gulf of Mexico will determine how strong it becomes.

The storm is expected to turn to the northwest and eventually north over the weekend. However, so far the system has not begun its turn to the northwest, which has led the hurricane center to shift the forecast cone to the west.

This will allow more time for strengthening and the hurricane center shows the storm nearing hurricane strength by the time it reaches landfall in the Big Bend region of Florida Monday morning.

“The westward shift to the track forecast now also keeps the system over the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico longer, giving the system additional time to potentially strengthen,” the hurricane center said. “It is important to note that because of the forecast track being parallel to the west coast of Florida, the location and timing of a potential landfall cannot be pinned down at this time.”

It will track parallel to Florida’s Gulf Coast for some time this weekend and strengthen as it does so, before curving east and making landfall. The system’s strength would be limited if it moves more quickly over Florida.

“Since the forecast track is almost parallel to the west coast of the Florida Peninsula and the southeast coast of the US, only a small change in the track could lead to large changes in which land areas receive any landfalls and the biggest impacts,” the National Hurricane Center cautioned Friday.

Where and when the storm comes ashore and how strong it is at that time will affect the risk of storm surge. For now, up to 3 feet of storm surge is possible this weekend along the coast from South Florida to north of Tampa Bay.

No matter its strength, torrential, flooding rain will be the most significant impact from the storm, especially if the system were to slow down, a possible scenario.

The flood threat prompted Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis to declare a state of emergency. The order was issued Thursday for 54 of the state’s 67 counties to mobilize state and local resources ahead of the storm.

Sandbag distribution began Friday for residents in several communities in the Orlando and Tampa metros. Multiple counties in the state’s panhandle – including Escambia, Okaloosa and Santa Rosa – started distributing sandbags Thursday.

A level 2 of 4 risk of flooding rainfall is in place Saturday for much of South Florida as the system organizes just off the coast, according to the Weather Prediction Center.

“Very intense” rainfall rates of 2.5 to 3 inches per hour are possible within the heaviest storms in the system’s outer rain bands Saturday, the WPC warned. Rainfall rates this potent are enough to cause flash flooding, even in marshy areas of the state more capable of handling excess water.

The risk to life and property would increase considerably if these intense storms reach the Miami area. Up to 20 inches of rain deluged South Florida in a very short window in early July and produced extremely dangerous flash flooding across the greater Miami metro, resulting in a couple hundred water rescues.

The level 2 of 4 risk of flooding rainfall will expand over much of the state and reach into other portions of Georgia and the Carolinas Sunday.

Exactly when and where torrential downpours set up outside of Florida will depend on the system’s ultimate track, but heavy rain is possible as early as Sunday afternoon. It’s also possible that this risk level will increase – especially in Florida – once the system’s track comes into further focus.

Heavy rain will continue to pound parts of the Southeast early next week, especially if, instead of tracking steadily along the Florida Gulf Coast and making landfall, the system slows down and stalls over one region – potentially around Florida’s Big Bend.

Rainfall totals of 4 to 8 inches are possible through Monday over much of Florida and the coasts of Georgia and the Carolinas. But if the system happens to stall, rainfall totals could increase dramatically.

Freshwater flooding – flooding caused by rainfall – has become the deadliest aspect of tropical systems in the last decade, according to research conducted by the National Hurricane Center.

A world warming due to fossil fuel pollution is making this potential threat more dangerous. Studies have also shown tropical systems are slowing down over time, which means they’re more likely produce greater rainfall totals over a given area.

Oceans are also getting warmer and supercharging storms, pumping them full of moisture. A 2022 study published in the journal Nature Communications found climate change increased hourly rainfall rates in tropical storms by 5 to 10% and in hurricanes by 8 to 11%.

CNN’s Sara Smart contributed to this report.

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(CNN) — The eerie calm over the Atlantic basin that settled in after historic Hurricane Beryl is about to be shattered.

It’s been more than three weeks since deadly Beryl made its final landfall in Texas. Dry, dusty air has helped keep the Atlantic hurricane-free ever since.

But a disorganized area of showers and thunderstorms in the eastern Caribbean is expected to encounter favorable atmospheric conditions by this weekend and develop into a tropical depression or tropical storm.

The next tropical storm that forms will be given the name Debby.

The system will track along the northern Caribbean through Friday before emerging near the Bahamas or Florida early this weekend.

It’s exact track through the Caribbean will determine when a tropical system could form. It will likely struggle to organize enough to be considered a tropical depression or storm if it interacts with the disruptive mountainous areas of Puerto Rico, Hispaniola and eastern Cuba.

The tropical wave could organize sooner if it skims just north of the islands and dodges the terrain.

Ocean temperatures in the Atlantic, Caribbean Sea and Gulf are abnormally warm and could strengthen the system, no matter when and where it forms.

It’s still unclear what path the system will take. A strong area of high pressure over the Atlantic Ocean could steer the cyclone anywhere from the eastern Gulf of Mexico to the southeast US coast over the weekend, but its early strength or lack thereof will play a factor in which way it will go.

The faster organization occurs, the more likely the cyclone will curve northward sooner and take a track that places the Bahamas and southeast US in its path. A more disorganized system could travel much farther west and approach the Gulf before curving north.

An ocean primed for storms

August typically marks the beginning of the most active part of hurricane season because ocean waters are very warm, and disruptive upper-level winds and dry, dusty air fade.

But ocean temperatures across the Atlantic have been anything but typical this season, and have already proved their mettle.

Beryl was able to become the earliest Category 5 hurricane on record in early July partly because waters in the Caribbean were as warm as they normally would be at the peak of hurricane season. Now, parts of the Caribbean and Atlantic are as warm or warmer than they typically are in early October when ocean heat maxes out.

Warm oceans are a major consequence of a world warming due to fossil fuel pollution and provide the fuel for tropical systems to explode in strength at a breakneck pace.

Off-the-charts ocean heat is one reason a chorus of forecasters are calling for a hyperactive hurricane season. A building La Niña and its subsequent lack of disruptive upper level winds, known as wind shear, over the Atlantic are the others.

The season started off close to average when Tropical Storm Alberto formed in mid-June – the typical timing for the first named storm of the season. But any semblance of normalcy quickly dissipated once Beryl roared to life at the end of the month.

The season’s first hurricane normally forms around August 11 and the first Category 3 or stronger hurricane occurs around September 1, according to the NHC. Beryl obliterated both timeframes.

In addition to Alberto and Beryl, the basin also churned out short-lived Tropical Storm Chris.

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(CNN) — Emergency responders sprang into action early Tuesday to rescue residents in flooded areas of northeast Vermont after a 1-in-1,000-year rainfall event created a surge of dangerous floodwaters for the second time in a matter of weeks.

Ten swift-water rescue teams completed about two dozen rescues in Caledonia and Essex counties, some of the hardest-hit areas, where flash flood emergencies warning of “catastrophic flooding” were issued and the storm unleashed inches of rainfall in just a few hours.

Nearly 8 inches of rain fell in St. Johnsbury, Vermont, in just 6 hours, an amount considered a 1-in-1,000 year event – one so extreme, it usually only happens once every thousand years in normal conditions. A total of 8.41 inches fell there in what is one of the highest calendar day totals in state history, the National Weather Service in Vermont said.

Extreme rainfall is becoming more common as fossil fuel pollution pushes temperatures higher and bolsters the atmosphere’s ability to store more water vapor. Scientists are very confident that climate change is increasing rainfall rates – how hard the rain is falling – and the amount of rain a storm can produce.

Rescue teams remain in the area Tuesday to respond to potential additional calls for help throughout the day with more rainfall possible this afternoon into the evening, according to Vermont Emergency Management.

Floodwaters have washed out roads and several state road closures are in effect.

A team was heading out to survey the damage, which included “quite a bit” of structural and road damage, National Weather Service meteorologist Seth Kutikoff told the Associated Press.

“We do know, unfortunately, some of these same areas were hit three weeks ago with some serious flash flooding, as well,” he said. “The integrity of some structures were already weakened.”

In Lyndonville, a town about 40 miles (64 kilometers) north of Montpelier, the state capital, Deryck Colburn said he woke up to a neighbor pounding on his door. They live along a brook.

“I went down the road to her house, and there was no road. There was just a river,” he said.

Colburn said he heard the same surge of rushing water he’d heard in flooding earlier in July, along with the unnerving sound of tumbling boulders carried by the water.

The nearby Passumpsic River rose 13 feet in four hours as floodwater surged into it.

This is the third devastating flood event to hit Vermont in just over a year.

More than 100 people were rescued and at least one person died in early July after the remnants of Hurricane Beryl doused the state.

Northeast Vermont and other portions of the state are also still recovering from more extensive flooding just over a year ago. Last year’s flooding caused numerous road and bridge washouts, land and mudslides resulting in significant property damage and loss.

‘This community has been hurt’

The owners of Papa Tirozzi’s Bakery, Pizza and Fish Shack believed they already saw the worst of Mother Nature when their restaurant’s driveway was destroyed from the remnants of Beryl earlier this month.

On Tuesday they learned they were wrong.

“(Our driveway) was annihilated,” Nancy Tirozzi told CNN Tuesday. “But now, it’s 20 times worse.”

Nancy and her husband, Anthony, rushed to their restaurant in St. Johnsbury, about two hours east of Burlington, as soon as they got an emergency weather warning around 4 a.m.

“We had no idea anything like this was gonna happen,” Nancy said, adding the floodwaters were up to 5 feet deep outside the restaurant when they arrived. Once they had receded, the couple turned toward working tirelessly to try to clean up the mess.

“I can’t stop crying,” Nancy said. “It’s bad, it’s really, really, bad. This community has been hurt.”

The property itself was too damaged to repair themselves, so the couple focused their energy on the inside of the building, sweeping out water and mud and ripping out the molding on the floor.

They hope they can clean up enough to reopen in the next few days, but their hurried work might be for nought.

“When you’re not open, you can’t make money,” Nancy said. “But at this point, you can’t get to us. Our street is closed down,” she added.

Nancy’s belief in her tight-knit community is what is pulling her through this moment of despair. That, and the thought of supplying them again soon with food that brings them together.

The Associated Press and CNN’s Robert Shackelford, Amy Simonson and Lauren Rapp contributed to this report.

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(CNN) — A routine part of the job for Southwest Airlines flight attendants is turning into a dangerous mess as a searing summer heat and the airline’s beverage management practices have made soda cans volatile mid-flight.

There were more than 100 reports of soda cans exploding on flights in June, Southwest flight attendant union president Bill Bernal told CNN, some of which have injured flight attendants. Bernal predicted nearly three times as many reports of exploding cans by the end of July.

The issue has been happening “for years,” but this year has had more incidents than normal, he added.

Southwest Airlines wouldn’t comment on the number of incidents and injuries or their nature, but confirmed to CNN the issue is occurring.

The hazard is unique to Southwest because the airline doesn’t serve perishable items and so it isn’t required to have refrigerated trucks or storage, CBS News reported. This can expose the cans to extreme conditions heat at several airports in the hottest parts of the country: Las Vegas, Phoenix, Houston and Dallas.

The cans containing carbonated beverages are under such immense heat-driven pressure they are like “little bombs” capable of rupturing with the slightest movement, even when they aren’t being opened, according to Kate Biberdorf, a chemistry professor at the University of Texas at Austin.

“I don’t want to say that to scare people, but that’s really what you should think of them as,” Biberdorf cautioned.

“We’re aware of the issue and have been taking steps to keep onboard beverages cooler, especially in our airports experiencing extreme temperatures,” a Southwest spokesperson said in a written statement.

Extreme heat has been plentiful this year as fossil fuel pollution drives more frequent and intense heat waves. Around 100 cities in the US are experiencing their hottest summer on record so far, including Southwest hubs Phoenix and Las Vegas.

Southwest and the union representing its flight attendants told CNN they were working together on efforts to mitigate the issue.

Those efforts include using refrigerated provisioning trucks and trailers for transportation and storage of carbonated beverages and using temperature guns to measure cans and determine if they can be loaded onto an aircraft safely.

“Both the short term and long term fixes are actual engineered fixes that should eventually all but eradicate the exploding can issue at Southwest Airlines,” Bernal said.

How cans can become ‘little bombs’

Extreme heat and carbonation don’t mix. Even if the issue goes away at Southwest, it can happen anywhere.

The carbonation in a soda or sparkling water is produced by adding carbon dioxide gas to a liquid base, mixing it together and sealing it up.

The carbon dioxide fights to return to its original gas state, which is why soda and other carbonated beverages are bubbly. It’s also why any carbonated drink goes flat when left open for a considerable time – all the carbon dioxide gas leaves the liquid and escapes into the air.

When a can of soda is exposed to heat, the carbon dioxide gas in the mixture separates and expands, exerting pressure on the can from the inside, Kate Biberdorf told CNN.

Soda cans are engineered and designed to handle reaching a pressure level between three to six times the can’s normal pressure, according to Biberdorf.

But if that pressure level is exceeded or if there’s any small flaw in the manufacturing of the can, it could become a “little bomb,” Biberdorf explained.

During beverage service, if a Southwest flight attendant handles or opens a can where the pressure has built up close to its literal breaking point, it could easily rupture, Biberdorf said.

Altitude likely isn’t a factor, as the cabins of aircraft are pressurized to match conditions on Earth’s surface.

But what’s happening with Southwest’s cans is the same thing that could happen to any unopened carbonated beverage can left in a hot car.

“In the summer, people will store (cans) in the car and it’s usually ok, but as soon as you start moving, you’ve added a little bit of extra force – maybe it slams against the side (of the car) – and then it explodes,” Biberdorf explained.

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(CNN) — The Atlantic Ocean has been on a nearly three-week long rest after producing historic Hurricane Beryl, but the basin is about to wake up.

“There’s definitely some (tropical activity) coming,” Phil Klotzbach, a hurricane expert and research scientist at Colorado State University, said. “It’s coming sooner rather than too much later.”

Tropical activity in the Atlantic typically starts to ramp up in August, particularly during the second half of the month. But this season – which is expected to be hyperactive – got off to a historic start when Beryl exploded into a ferocious Category 5 hurricane in early July.

Beryl was supercharged by ocean waters as warm as they should be in September – a phenomenon becoming more common as the planet warms due to fossil fuel pollution.

The rapidly intensifying hurricane also had two other ingredients needed for storms to form that have been missing ever since: moist air and a lack of storm-disrupting upper level winds, called wind shear.

Ocean temperatures are still off the charts, but a vast expanse of dry, dusty air has limited moisture and helped rein in tropical activity over the Atlantic post-Beryl.

This so-called Saharan dust originates from dust storms in Africa, gets trapped in a layer of air above the surface and is then carried out over the Atlantic by persistent winds.

Batches of Saharan dust flow out of Africa and over the Atlantic year-round, but high concentrations peak in the early summer, just like this year.

This July has so far produced the month’s second-highest concentration of dust over the tropical Atlantic on record, according to an analysis by hurricane expert Michael Lowry. Reliable satellite data for this measurement begins in 2002.

But this disruptive dry, dusty air isn’t sticking around and will likely dissipate in August, according to Klotzbach.

Dust wasn’t the only factor keeping the Atlantic quiet after Beryl. Upper-level winds were too hostile for hurricanes to develop in July, but signs point to calmer winds and favorable conditions in the weeks to come, according to Klotzbach.

Klotzbach estimates all of the necessary atmospheric conditions will come together in the next week and a half, which will open the door for more hurricanes.

While Klotzbach doesn’t think a storm is guaranteed to form immediately after conducive conditions align, it’s only a matter of time before one does.

Forecasts from the Climate Prediction Center highlight an area for potential tropical development from July 31 to August 6. Part of the western Atlantic and the Caribbean has at least a 20% chance of tropical development during that timeframe.

That 20%-or-greater chance persists through mid-August and expands across almost the entire tropical Atlantic, from west of Cabo Verde into the eastern Caribbean.

The most active period of the Atlantic hurricane season typically runs from mid-August to mid-October, with activity peaking around September 10.

Once hurricane season wakes up again, quiet periods could be few and far between.

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Over the last couple decades, wildfires have increased in number and size, particularly in western states. This is likely due to climate change, which can affect precipitation, wind, temperature, vegetation and other factors that drive wildfires.

These longer, more active fire seasons combined with increased housing have put more homes at risk. One study found the number of houses within wildfire perimeters has doubled since 1990.

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