See 7 p.m. update for Tropical Storm Marco
August 22, 2020
Nicholls Cancels Classes and Closes Campus For the Next Week
August 22, 2020
…LAURA NEAR THE EASTERN PORTION OF THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC…
…HEAVY RAINS OCCURRING OVER PUERTO RICO AND THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC…
Maximum sustained winds are near 50 mph (85 km/h) with highe gusts. Tropical-storm-force winds extend outward up to 205 miles (335 km) from the center. No significant changes in strength are forecast to occur during the next 48 hours while Laura moves near or over Hispaniola and Cuba. Strengthening is forecast once Laura moves into the Gulf of Mexico Monday night and Tuesday.
*** A Tropical Storm Warning is in effect for…
* Puerto Rico, Vieques and Culebra & the U.S. Virgin Islands
* The northern coast of the Dominican Republic from Cabo Engano to the border with Haiti
* The southern coast of the Dominican Republic from Cabo Engano to Punta Palenque
* The northern coast of Haiti from Le Mole St. Nicholas to the
border with the Dominican Republic
* The southeastern Bahamas and the Turks & Caicos Islands
* Cuban provinces of Camaguey, Las Tunas, Holguin, Guantanamo, Santiago de Cuba, and Granma
A Tropical Storm Watch is in effect for…
* The central Bahamas and Andros Island
* Florida Keys from Ocean Reef to Key West, the Dry Tortugas & Florida Bay
* Cuban provinces of Ciego De Avila, Sancti Spiritus, Villa Clara, Cienfuegos, Matanzas, Mayabeque, La Habana, Artemisa, and Pinar Del Rio
It should be noted that the Cuban province of Pinar Del Rio is still under a Tropical Storm Warning for Marco. Tropical storm conditions are expected within portions of the warning area through Sunday night. Tropical storm conditions are possible within portions of the watch area on Monday.
At 8 p.m. AST, the center of Tropical Storm Laura was located about 85 miles (135 km) east-southeast of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. It’s moving toward the west near 18 mph (30 km/h), and a generally west-northwestward motion is expected over the next few days. On the forecast track, the center of Laura will move across Hispaniola tonight and early Sunday, near or over Cuba Sunday and Monday, and into the southeastern Gulf of Mexico Monday night and Tuesday.
Laura is expected to produce the following rainfall accumulations through Monday:
– Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands: 3 to 6 inches, with maximum amounts of 8 inches possible along eastern portions and the southern slopes.
– Dominican Republic and Haiti: 4 to 8 inches, with maximum amounts of 12 inches across southern areas.
– Cuba: 3 to 6 inches, with isolated amounts of 8 inches.
– This heavy rainfall could lead to life-threatening flash and urban flooding, and the potential for mudslides across the Greater Antilles. Widespread minor to potential moderate river flooding is possible in Puerto Rico.
1 to 3 inches of rain, with isolated maximum totals of 5 inches, is expected over the northern Leeward Islands, the Turks and Caicos, southeast Bahamas and Jamaica.
The next complete advisory will be issued by NHC at 11 p.m. AST – www.hurricanes.gov
