SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — Tropical Storm Ernesto slammed into the northeastern Caribbean Tuesday, targeting Puerto Rico, where officials closed schools, opened shelters and moved dozens of endangered parrots from the U.S. territory into hurricane-proof rooms.
Ernesto is expected to strengthen into a hurricane Tuesday night into Wednesday as the storm’s center moves just northeast of Puerto Rico toward Bermuda. Forecasters have issued a hurricane watch and tropical storm warning for the U.S. and British Virgin Islands as well as the smaller Puerto Rican islands of Vieques and Culebra, which are popular with tourists.
“Because there is a potential for Ernesto to become a hurricane while in the vicinity of the Virgin Islands, a hurricane watch remains in effect,” the U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami said.
The storm passed through the U.S. Virgin Islands Tuesday night and is expected to pass just northeast and north of Puerto Rico Tuesday night and Wednesday morning. It is then expected to move toward open waters and be near Bermuda Friday.
Heavy rains began to pound Puerto Rico and strong winds turned the ocean a milky turquoise blue as people rushed to finish securing their homes and businesses.
“I hope this goes away quickly,” said José Rodríguez, 36, as he climbed onto the roof of his uncle’s wooden shack in the Afro-Caribbean community of Piñones on Puerto Rico’s northern coast to secure the business famous for its fried street food.
Ernesto was located about 30 kilometres east of St. Thomas Tuesday evening. It had maximum sustained winds of 100 km/h and was moving toward the west-northwest at 30 km/h.
“We’re going to have a lot of rain,” Puerto Rico Governor Pedro Pierluisi said, urging people to stay indoors until Tuesday night.
He mobilized the National Guard as teams from across the island went to flood zones and elderly residents as part of last-minute preparations. Meanwhile, Department of Natural Resources officials working at breeding centers for the island’s only native parrot, the Puerto Rican Amazon, moved them inland.
Ernesto Rodriguez of the National Weather Service warned that the storm’s path could change as it approaches Puerto Rico.
“We must not let our guard down,” he said.
As intermittent rains hit northeastern Puerto Rico, residents of Piñones tried to squeeze in a few extra hours of work.
María Abreu, 25, prepared fried pastries stuffed with shrimp, crab, chicken and even iguana meat while waiting for customers.
“They always come. They buy them in case there is a power outage,” she said.
On the road, Juan Pizarro, 65, picked about 100 coconuts from palm trees swaying in the strong breeze. He had already secured his home.
“I’m ready for anything,” he said.
Forecasters warned that waves could reach 20 feet (6 meters) high, and widespread flooding and landslides could occur. Rainfall is expected to reach 6 to 8 inches (15 to 20 centimeters) in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, and up to 10 inches (25 centimeters) in isolated areas. Puerto Rico has six reservoirs that were already overflowing before the storm.
Puerto Rico authorities have warned of widespread power outages due to the collapse of the electrical grid, which crews are still repairing after Hurricane Maria flattened it in September 2017 as a Category 4 storm.
Juan Saca, president of Luma Energy, a private company that manages the transmission and distribution of electricity in Puerto Rico, urged people to report power outages: “Puerto Rico’s electrical system is not modernized enough to detect power outages.”
Power outages are also a concern in the neighboring U.S. Virgin Islands for similar reasons, with outages reported in St. Thomas and St. John on Monday.
“Don’t sleep on this,” said U.S. Virgin Islands Gov. Albert Bryan Jr., whose administration announced early Tuesday that all schools were closed.
The U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency echoed those warnings, saying residents of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands “should prepare for extended power outages.”
On Tuesday morning, Ernesto flooded the French island of Guadeloupe, where authorities closed several major roads and warned that drinking water quality would be affected for several days. Meanwhile, the storm downed some trees in Antigua and knocked out power to most of the island. Ernesto also caused the cancellation of dozens of flights to and from Puerto Rico.
Ernesto is the fifth named storm of this year’s Atlantic hurricane season.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has predicted an above-average Atlantic hurricane season this year due to record-high ocean temperatures. It is predicting between 17 and 25 named storms, with four to seven major hurricanes of Category 3 or higher.
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