Will tropical storm Alex become a hurricane and threaten to dump Corexit from the Gulf on my house?”
(June 25) — The development of Tropical Storm Alex, the first named storm of the 2010 Atlantic basin hurricane season, is looking increasingly likely for this weekend. The system first may be a threat for parts of Central America and the Yucatan Peninsula before potentially becoming the first hurricane of the season to churn in the Gulf of Mexico. The possibility is stoking new fears about a big storm interacting with the gulf oil spill and hindering efforts to contain it. After analyzing the data collected and monitoring the continuing strengthening of the system on Friday afternoon, the system was upgraded to a tropical depression, which is one step below a tropical storm. A depression is not assigned a name, but this is expected to reach tropical storm strength before moving inland over the Yucatan Peninsula later this weekend. Tropical storm warnings have been issued for the east coast of the Yucatan Peninsula and the coast of Belize. A sustained wind of at least 39 mph is require
Tropical Storm Alex bore down on the coast of Belize and the Yucatan Peninsula today, and may spare BP Plc’s efforts to contain and clean up the largest oil spill in U.S. history. “This should have a very minimal effect on the cleanup,” said Jill Hasling, executive director of the Weather Research Center in Houston, which provides weather forecasts to the oil industry worldwide. She said the closest approach to the leaking well might be 400 miles (643 kilometers) away, based on the storm’s current track. Alex is about 30 miles (48 kilometers) east of Belize City and is moving to the west at about 12 mph, according to a 5 p.m. advisory from the U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami. The storm has maximum sustained winds of about 65 mph, more than the 39 mph threshold needed to be classified a tropical storm. Admiral Thad Allen said the U.S. Coast Guard is monitoring the Atlantic season’s first tropical storm, which is on a path to pass through the southern end of the Gulf of Mexico. T
The development of Tropical Storm Alex, the first named storm of the 2010 Atlantic basin hurricane season, is looking increasingly likely for this weekend. The system first may be a threat for parts of Central America and the Yucatan Peninsula before potentially becoming the first hurricane of the season to churn in the Gulf of Mexico. The possibility is stoking new fears about a big storm interacting with the gulf oil spill and hindering efforts to contain it. After analyzing the data collected and monitoring the continuing strengthening of the system on Friday afternoon, the system was upgraded to a tropical depression, which is one step below a tropical storm. A depression is not assigned a name, but this is expected to reach tropical storm strength before moving inland over the Yucatan Peninsula later this weekend.
