MIAMI _ A weak tropical depression that was rolling westward at nearly the same speed as its top winds is likely to fizzle over the next few days, hurricane center forecasters said Thursday evening.
In their 5 p.m. EDT advisory, National Hurricane Center forecasters said the storm located just over 1,100 miles east of the Lesser Antilles was slowly being gobbled up by dry Saharan air, threatening its survival. The depression had picked up forward speed, moving west at 23 mph. With sustained winds of just 30 mph, forecasters said it would be difficult for the depression to maintain its strength amid the competing winds.
Over the next 36 hours, as it encounters increasing wind shear, the depression will likely begin to fall apart, forecasters said. It's also likely the circulation of the depression could completely fall apart at any time, reducing it to a tropical wave, they said.
