Hurricane Iona 'rapidly weakening' in the Pacific Ocean: See tracker
In an advisory issued at 11 p.m. local time on Tuesday, July 29, the NHC said Iona had maximum sustained winds around 105 mph with higher gusts. The hurricane reached maximum sustained winds around 125 mph on Tuesday, reaching Category 3 status on the Saffir-Simpson wind scale.
Iona is expected to continue moving west, although further weakening is expected Wednesday, followed by "little change in strength" Wednesday night and Thursday, hurricane center forecasters said.
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This forecast track shows the most likely path of the center of the storm. It does not illustrate the full width of the storm or its impacts, and the center of the storm is likely to travel outside the cone up to 33% of the time.
This forecast track shows the most likely path of the center of the storm. It does not illustrate the full width of the storm or its impacts, and the center of the storm is likely to travel outside the cone up to 33% of the time.
In addition to Iona, the hurricane center is also tracking Tropical Storm Keli and three other tropical disturbances in the Pacific.
Keli is moving rapidly westward and that motion is expected to continue during the next day or so, according to the NHC, with maximum sustained winds near 40 mph with higher gusts. Forecasters said Keli is expected to weaken to a tropical depression by late Wednesday and dissipate by Thursday.
Also in the Pacific, the hurricane center said late Tuesday night, July 29, an area of low pressure located about 1,150 miles east-southeast of the Hawaiian Islands "remain limited and have changed little since this morning."
Forecasters said if persistent showers and thunderstorms re-develop during the next day or so, a short-lived tropical depression could still form, as the system is expected to enter the Central Pacific basin shortly. The NHC gives this system, labeled as EP98, a 60% chance of formation through the next 48 hours.
The hurricane center also said it is keeping tabs on a trough of low pressure located several hundred miles southwest of the southwestern coast of Mexico that is producing "a large area of disorganized showers and thunderstorms."
Environmental conditions appear conducive for development, the NHC said, and a tropical depression is likely to form during the next day or two while the system moves west-northwestward around 15 mph, remaining "well offshore of the southwestern coast of Mexico."
Hurricane center forecasters give this system, labeled as EP99, an 80% chance of formation through the next 48 hours.
Lastly, an area of low pressure is forecast to develop well south of southern or southwestern Mexico late this week, the hurricane center said. Environmental conditions appear conducive for some gradual development of this system and a tropical depression could develop over the weekend or early next week, the NHC said July 29. The system has a 60% chance of formation through the next seven days.
Hurricanes are born in the tropics, above warm water. Clusters of thunderstorms can develop over the ocean when water temperatures exceed 80 degrees Fahrenheit. If conditions are right, the clusters swirl into a storm known as a tropical wave or tropical depression.
A tropical depression becomes a named tropical storm once its sustained wind speeds reach 39 miles per hour. When its winds reach 74 mph, the storm officially becomes a hurricane.
Delaying potentially life-saving preparations could mean waiting until it's too late. "Get your disaster supplies while the shelves are still stocked, and get that insurance checkup early, as flood insurance requires a 30-day waiting period," NOAA recommends.
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