LAS PALMAS DE GRAN CANARIA – A hurricane is approaching the Canary Islands and meteorologists are warning of possible unprecedented rain as a result on the islands this weekend and early next week.
Those downpours could leave up to 100 litres of water per square metre in 24 hours, Meteored said. Although the chances are slim, the western islands could experience heavy rainfall.
Currently, the activity of the tropical and subtropical Atlantic Oceans is causing two tropical cyclones to be active. These are; ‘Gastos’, a tropical storm, and ‘Fiona’, a major Category 4 hurricane.
According to meteorologist Víctor González, the most dangerous is in the Caribbean and can develop into a strong hurricane. The most unusual is near Cape Verde. Forecast models indicate that the tropical wave, now heading west, will change course. And, instead, it will follow the coast of Africa to the southwest of the Canary Islands. For the time being it is not known whether it will hit the islands (low probability) or only approach with heavy rains as a result.
Cold sea current
González explains it is not unusual for a tropical wave to move in this way. However, it is unusual for it to develop into a hurricane. This is due to the presence of a cold ocean current running off the African coast. To this can be added the presence of dry air from the Sahara that prevents convection.
In this case, he adds that, according to the US Hurricane Center, the requirements for development into a hurricane have been met. The chance that this will happen in the next day and a half is 60%.
Most likely: a tropical cyclone
For now, Aemet predicts that the most likely scenario is for the hurricane to turn into a tropical depression on its way, causing severe weather in the Canary Islands. The depression will be in the southwest of the Canary Islands for the first few days of next week and will cause very intense rain showers.
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