Tropical Storm Ernesto dropped torrential rain on Puerto Rico on Wednesday and left hundreds of thousands of people without power in the U.S. territory as it threatened to strengthen into a major hurricane en route to Bermuda.
The storm was located about 125 miles northwest of San Juan, Puerto Rico, and was moving over open waters. It had maximum sustained winds of 70 mph and was moving northwest at 16 mph. Ernesto is expected to become a hurricane later Wednesday.
A tropical storm warning was in effect for several of Puerto Rico's islands, including the main island and Culebra and Vieques, as well as for the U.S. and British Virgin Islands.
Schools and government agencies remained closed on those islands, where heavy flooding was reported in several areas, forcing officials to block roads, some of which were strewn with trees. Nearly 100 flights also were canceled to and from Puerto Rico.
“A lot of rain, a lot of rain,” Culebra Mayor Edilberto Romero said in a phone interview. “We have trees that have fallen on public roads. There are some roofs that are blown off.”
Ernesto is forecast to move through open waters for the rest of the week and make its closest approach to Bermuda on Saturday. It is expected to become a major Category 3 storm in the upcoming days and then weaken slightly to a Category 2 as it nears Bermuda.
“Residents need to prepare now before conditions worsen,” said National Security Minister Michael Weeks. “Now is not the time for complacency.”
As Ernesto barrels toward Bermuda, forecasters warned of heavy swells along the U.S. East Coast.
“That means that anybody who goes to the beach, even if the weather is beautiful and nice, it could be dangerous … with those rip currents,” said Robbie Berg, warning coordination meteorologist with the National Hurricane Center .
Between 4 and 6 inches of rain is expected in the U.S. and British Virgin Islands and 6 to 8 inches in Puerto Rico, with up to 10 inches in isolated areas.
The government of the U.S. Virgin Islands reported an island-wide blackout in St. Croix, while in Puerto Rico, more than half a million customers were without power.
Puerto Rico’s power grid was razed by Hurricane Maria in September 2017 as a Category 4 storm, and it remains frail as crews continue to rebuild the system.
Not everyone can afford generators on the island of 3.2 million people with a more than 40% poverty rate.
“People already prepared themselves with candles,” said Lucía Rodríguez, a 31-year-old street vendor.
Puerto Rico Gov. Pedro Pierluisi has said that President Biden had approved his request for emergency FEMA funds.
Ernesto is the fifth named storm of this year’s Atlantic hurricane season .
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has predicted an above-average Atlantic hurricane season this year because of record warm ocean temperatures. It forecast 17 to 25 named storms, with four to seven major hurricanes of Category 3 or higher.
Coto writes for the Associated Press. AP journalist Julie Walker in New York contributed.
This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times .
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