FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Tropical Storm Peter and Tropical Storm Rose were getting clobbered by storm-shredding, upper-level winds Tuesday, leaving each storm barely clinging to its tropical storm status.
By midday, Peter and Rose each had top winds of 40 mph, which is just 1 mph above the minimum threshold for a tropical storm.
Wind shear and cooler water temperatures have hindered the development of both storms this week, a trend that will continue for the next couple of days, according to the National Hurricane Center. Forecasters don’t believe either storm will survive that timeframe.
In addition to Peter and Rose, forecasters are expecting a tropical depression to form as early as Thursday in the far eastern Atlantic Ocean. If it were to become a tropical storm, it would be Sam.
As of 11 a.m. EDT, Peter was 140 miles northeast of San Juan, Puerto Rico, moving west-northwest at 9 mph, about 107 miles from of the boundary between the Atlantic and the Caribbean Sea. Forecasters expect its ultimate path will curve north later this week toward Bermuda and away from the Caribbean.
Peter could bring 1 to 4 inches of rain to parts of the Virgin Islands and northern portions of Haiti and the Dominican Republic, according to the National Hurricane Center.
Peter, which formed early Sunday in the central Atlantic, should weaken to a tropical depression by midday Wednesday then quickly become a remnant low, forecasters said.
Tropical Storm Rose, located in the far eastern Atlantic, is expected to weaken back into a tropical depression as early as Tuesday night.
Including Sam, the remaining storm names for the 2021 season are Teresa, Victor and Wanda.
Should we run out of storm names, late-season storms will no longer carry baffling Greek names like Zeta and Theta that were used last year.
The World Meteorological Organization announced in May that the Greek alphabet names were ditched for being confusing. Too many letters, such as zeta and theta, sounded similar. Forecasters found themselves fielding questions from the media and public about the use of Greek letters rather than about the storms themselves.
Experts have opted to use an overflow list of proper names instead. The list includes Adria, Braylen, Caridad, Deshawn, Emery, Foster, Gemma and Heath.
So far in the Atlantic hurricane season, which runs through Nov. 30, there have been 17 named storms, six hurricanes and three major hurricanes.
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(Sun Sentinel staff writer David Fleshler contributed to this report.)
