What has, for most of the summer, been a fairly quiet hurricane season is now very active....with two named storms and three tropical systems in the Atlantic.
One of those is in the southeastern Caribbean, currently known as Invest 98-L, and has a 90% chance of development as it moves west over the next few days. Most long-range forecast models show this system in the Gulf of Mexico by next week. National Weather Service's Larry Kelly says now is the time to check supplies and stay updated. "Check your supply kit, review your plans," Kelly said in a mid-morning briefing. "keep your eye on things through the weekend. There's still a lot of uncertainty, but we'll keep you updated, especially once this system does develop."
However, Kelly says it's still way too soon to predict where this system might end up, and how strong it might be.
Meanwhile, local emergency management officials are also checking supplies and beginning to plan "It is far off right now," said Joe Borries with Pinellas County Emergency Management. "but we are contacting our partners now, looking at our sheltering and feeding---doing everything that citizens should be doing right now, reviewing our plans, checklists, and supplies."
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