At 7:00 pm EDT on Wednesday, satellite images and radar data from Belize indicated that the centre of hurricane Rina was located about 150 miles south-southeast of Cozumel, Mexico, and about 140 miles east of Chetumal, Mexico.
According to the National Hurricane Center in Miami, Rina is moving toward the northwest near 6 mph and a gradual turn to the north with a slight increase in forward speed is expected Wednesday night and Thursday. On the forecast track, the centre of Rina will be moving near or over the east coast of the Yucatan peninsula on Thursday.
Maximum sustained winds are near 85 mph, with higher gusts. Rina is a category one hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson hurricane wind scale. No important changes in strength are expected before the centre of Rina reaches the coast of the Yucatan peninsula on Thursday. Hurricane force winds extend outward up to 15 miles from the centre and tropical storm force winds extend outward up to 105 miles.
A hurricane warning is in effect for the northeast coast of the Yucatan peninsula from north of Punta Gruesa to San Felipe. A tropical storm warning is in effect for the east coast of the Yucatan peninsula from Chetumal to Punta Gruesa; the north coast of the Yucatan peninsula west of San Felipe to Progreso. Interests in western Cuba should monitor the progress of Rina.
The government of Belize has discontinued the tropical storm watch from Belize City to the Mexican border.
Tropical storm conditions are expected to reach the coast in the tropical storm warning area on Wednesday night. Hurricane conditions are expected to begin within the hurricane warning area on Thursday.
Rina is expected to produce rainfall amounts of 8 to 16 inches over the eastern Yucatan peninsula and Cozumel through Friday. A dangerous storm surge will raise water levels by as much as 2 to 4 feet above normal tide levels along the immediate coast near and to the right of the track of the centre. Near the coast, the surge will be accompanied by large and destructive waves.
Meanwhile, a surface trough of low pressure is producing disorganized cloudiness and showers over the west-central Caribbean Sea. Development of this system is not likely before this weekend and it therefore has a low chance of becoming a tropical cyclone during the next 48 hours while moving westward at around 15 mph.
Source-Caribbean News Now
