Tropical Storm Elsa has now been upgraded to Hurricane Elsa by the National Hurricane Center (NHC) and it could hit Central Florida by early Wednesday morning. However, storm trackers still aren’t sure which path the storm is going to take.
#Elsa has strengthened into a hurricane. A sustained wind of 74 mph with a gust to 86 mph was recently reported at Barbados. A special advisory is being issued shortly. More info: https://t.co/tW4KeFW0gB pic.twitter.com/oQ8aCP7mEv
— National Hurricane Center (@NHC_Atlantic) July 2, 2021
Elsa is the first Atlantic hurricane of the year, and the fifth named storm (hence being named with the fifth letter in the alphabet.) It’s also more than a month earlier than they usually see a first hurricane.
AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Adam Douty said:
“Impacts to the contiguous United States would begin Monday night at the earliest after the system passes through the Caribbean. Residents, visitors or those with interests from the central Gulf Coast, across Florida and to the Carolina coast should monitor the progress of Elsa.”
Here is what Accuweather has posted today, but experts still aren’t sure where the storm will head yet.
The Orlando Sentinel indicated that Central Florida is in the “cone of uncertainty.”
“As of the 5 a.m. update, Central Florida is still part of Elsa’s cone of uncertainty. The storm is expected to slow down after some land interaction in Caribbean, and is projected to reach South Florida by Tuesday morning. Elsa’s eye is predicted to be passing over Central Florida by early Wednesday, according to the NHC. However, there is significant doubt in the track’s forecast over the next five days, the NHC said. Discrepancies in the track have made meteorologists’ confidence in the projection “lower than usual,” the NHC said.”
The issue is they don’t yet know which way the storm will go and if it will hit land or not. Hitting land can cause the storms to fall apart or weaken. Changes can also happen with direction or impact. So it’s very up in the air right now about exactly where the storm is going.
In this image from Jacksonville’s News 4, you can see all the different trajectories the storm could take.
So right now we really don’t know if or how bad Central Florida is going to get hit.
What do you think? Comment and let us know!
Sources: Orlando Sentinel, Accuweather, News 4 Jacksonville
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