Rene weakens to a tropical depression; Paulette a weaker tropical storm

The Weather Authority is keeping an eye on four tropical systems: one tropical storm, one tropical depression, and two tropical waves.

As of 11pm Tuesday, both Paulette and Rene are weaker than the previous update. Tropical Storm Rene has weakened into what is now Tropical Depression Rene, with 35 mph max sustained winds.

Rene should regain strength yet again as a tropical storm by Wednesday morning, and continue to undergo additional strengthening over the next 2-3 days, where it is still forecast to briefly become a weak Category 1 hurricane sometime late Thursday night.

Rene’s motion is currently to the west-northwest, but it should begin making a sharper turn to the north late Thursday into Friday. This motion will keep it out at sea, where it will pose no threat to the United States.

Paulette is also slightly weaker as of 11pm as it continues to battle some stronger vertical wind shear. Maximum sustained winds have decreased from 65 mph to 60 mph.

Paulette should not undergo anymore strengthening for the next 3 – 4 days, and instead, will continue to weaken. After that, some restrengthening will be possible over the weekend.

Paulette is currently moving to the northwest but is also expected to make a slightly sharper turn to the north on Friday. It is looking less likely that it will pose any threat to the United States, but should be watched just in case it ends up taking a more westerly track. Regardless, Paulette will have no impact on Southwest Florida.

Otherwise, we have two additional areas of interest. One is currently in the western Atlantic and the other is currently over Africa, but expected to move into the Atlantic by Thursday.

The first is an area of low pressure approximately 350 miles west-southwest of Bermuda. Conditions will be somewhat favorable for slow development over the next few days.

This will not be a threat to Southwest Florida, but could impact the coastal Carolinas by later this week. Right now, the National Hurricane Center is giving this disturbance a 40% chance of development within the next 5 days.

Lastly, just behind Tropical Storm Rene is another wave that is likely to form as it emerges off the African coast Wednesday or Thursday.

Due to favorable conditions, a tropical depression could form later this week or over the weekend as this disturbance moves slowly westward through the eastern Atlantic. Right now, the National Hurricane Center is giving this disturbance a 80% chance of development within the next 5 days.

Regardless of development, we have plenty of time to watch all of these tropical systems! Both tropical storms and tropical waves are thousands of miles away from Southwest Florida.

The next storm name on the list is Sally, followed by Teddy. We only have four names left until the Greek alphabet! The only time that ever happened was the historic 2005 Atlantic Hurricane Season.

The historic peak of hurricane season is 2 days away, so it’s no surprise how active we are. You can trust our team to keep you updated all season long!