SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — Authorities in the Bahamas closed a majority of schools on Monday following mandatory evacuations for some islands in the archipelago as Tropical Storm Imelda was expected to drop heavy rain in the northern Caribbean, with landslides killing one man in Cuba.
The storm was located about 35 miles (55 kilometers) north of Great Abaco Island, which is still recovering from Hurricane Dorian after it slammed into parts of the Bahamas as a devastating Category 5 hurricane in 2019.
Imelda had maximum sustained winds of 60 mph (95 kph) and was moving north at 9 mph (15 kph). It was forecast to become a hurricane on Tuesday and spin out to open ocean, according to the National Hurricane Center in Miami.
A tropical storm warning was in effect for parts of the northwestern Bahamas, including Eleuthera, the Abacos, Grand Bahama Island and the surrounding keys. Power outages were reported in some areas, with authorities closing government offices on affected islands.
A death and evacuations across Cuba
Imelda was expected to drop 4 to 8 inches (10 to 20 centimeters) of rain across the northwest Bahamas through Tuesday, and 2 to 4 inches (5 to 10 centimeters) across eastern Cuba. State media in Cuba reported that 60-year-old Luis Mario Pérez Coiterio died in Santiago de Cuba following landslides in that area.
“After two days of intense rains in the municipality of Santiago de Cuba, we are now in the stage of saving human lives and the economy of the entire city,” Mayor Indira Oliva Bueno said, according to a broadcast aired by the official Caribe channel.
In the easternmost part of Cuba, from Camagüey to Guantánamo, authorities supplied food and drinking water to residents, according to official TV reports.
Overall, Imelda forced the evacuation of some 1,291 people across Cuba, with 158 of them staying in shelters.
“We are working with our agricultural colleagues to provide food to the population, which is essential,” said Alexander Olivares, president of the San Antonio del Sur Defense Council in Guantánamo.
Humberto roars in open waters
Meanwhile, Hurricane Humberto, a Category 4 storm, churned in open waters nearby, which forecasters said would cause Imelda to abruptly turn to the east-northeast, away from the southeastern United States coast.
“This is really what’s going to be saving the United States from really seeing catastrophic rainfall,” said Alex DaSilva, lead hurricane expert for AccuWeather, a private U.S. weather forecasting company.
When two storms circle near each other, they create what’s known as the Fujiwhara effect, which means that they start to rotate counterclockwise around each other, DaSilva said.
“It’s a very rare phenomenon overall in the Atlantic basin,” he said.
Humberto had maximum sustained winds of 145 mph (230 kph). It was located about 340 miles (550 kilometers) south-southwest of Bermuda, moving northwest at 13 mph (20 kph). A tropical storm watch was in effect for Bermuda.
“This is going to be no threat to the United States,” DaSilva said.
The Carolinas brace for Imelda’s rains
However, moisture from Imelda was expected to move up the Carolinas, with heavy rain forecast through Tuesday morning. The heaviest rains will be limited to the coastline, from Charleston in South Carolina to Wilmington in North Carolina, while Charlotte and Raleigh might receive only 1 to 2 inches (3 to 5 centimeters) of rain, he said.
The Carolinas might see wind gusts of 40 mph, but only along the coastline, DaSilva said, as he warned of dangerous surf and heavy rip currents all week.
South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster said authorities were prepositioning search and rescue crews over the weekend.
In North Carolina, Gov. Josh Stein declared a state of emergency even before Imelda formed, while authorities on Tybee Island off the coast of Georgia handed out free sandbags to residents.
Further south in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Carl Alexandre exercised at the beach on Monday. He said he was grateful the storm was not heading toward South Florida, but that he would pray for those in the Bahamas.
“It’s great that we’re not having one as of right now,” Alexandre said. “And now we get to run in the Florida sun.”
Mick Varley, who was visiting Fort Lauderdale from London, said he’s delighted the storm will remain offshore.
“I’m very happy it’s not going to disrupt our plans,” he said.
‘A double whammy for Bermuda’
As Tropical Storm Imelda and Hurricane Humberto swirled in open waters, authorities in Bermuda prepared for two near misses.
“It’s going to be a double whammy for Bermuda, Humberto first and Imelda following close behind,” Da Silva said.
He said Imelda could pass within 15 miles (24 kilometers) of Bermuda as the Atlantic season’s soon-to-be fourth named hurricane. Meanwhile, the center of Humberto is expected to pass west and then north of Bermuda on Tuesday and Wednesday, according to the National Hurricane Center.
Michael Weeks, Bermuda’s national security minister, urged residents to prepare, warning that there have been “some near misses this season regarding severe storms.”
“Hurricane Humberto is a dangerous storm, and with another system developing to our south, every household in Bermuda should take the necessary steps to be prepared,” he said.
Flights to and from the islands in the Bahamas were canceled, with airports expected to reopen after weather conditions improve.
