Hurricane Ernesto strengthens on way to Bermuda; nearly 300K without power in Puerto Rico (2024)

A growing Hurricane Ernesto on Thursday headed for Bermuda, which is now under a hurricane warning, according to the National Hurricane Center. The system turned north after leaving nearly about 276,000 of Puerto Rico’s 1.4 million customers without power amid sweltering heat conditions.

As of the NHC’s 8 p.m. advisory, the center of Ernesto was located about 450 miles south-southwest of Bermuda with maximum sustained winds of 90 mph moving north at 13 mph. Its hurricane-force winds extend out 60 miles with tropical-storm-force winds extending out 265 miles.

NHC hurricane specialist John Cangialosi said hurricane conditions are expected on Bermuda Saturday, with tropical storm conditions likely beginning Friday afternoon. Ernesto’s progress is expected to slow as it heads north in the Atlantic with a shift to the northeast as its center passes by the island on Saturday.

“Strengthening is forecast during the next day or so, and Ernesto could be near major hurricane strength by Friday. Ernesto is forecast to be a large hurricane near Bermuda on Saturday,” Cangialosi said.

5AM AST Aug. 15: Key Messages for Hurricane #Ernesto. A Hurricane Warning has been issued for Bermuda, with strong winds, heavy rainfall and storm surge expected. The risk of life-threatening surf and rip currents is expected to increase along the U.S. East coast beaches this… pic.twitter.com/6cPwyajBIg

— National Hurricane Center (@NHC_Atlantic) August 15, 2024

The NHC predicts sustained winds of 110 mph Friday, which would make it a strong Category 2 hurricane with 130 mph gusts, and then reducing intensity more as it approaches Bermuda, but still with 100 mph sustained winds and 120 mph gusts.

Storm surge remains a threat with large and destructive waves along with 6 to 12 inches of rainfall with some areas getting up to 15 inches, the NHC said.

Swells for Ernesto have already begun to affect the Turks and Caicos and Bahamas, and are beginning to reach Bermuda. They’re expected to hit the Florida coast by Thursday night and continue into the weekend, which could make for life-threatening surf conditions and rip currents.

“I cannot stress enough how important it is for every resident to use this time to prepare. We have seen in the past the devastating effects of complacency,” said Bermuda National Security Minister Michael Weeks.

Ernesto became the fifth named storm of the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season sweeping through the Leeward Islands on Tuesday as a tropical storm and developing into the season’s third hurricane Wednesday as it moved past the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico, where it left hundreds of thousands without power and dropped torrents of rain.

Sweltering heat on Puerto Rico has raised health concerns as the U.S. island territory is still recovering form infrastructure damage done by Hurricane Maria in 2017.

The spinning storm on Thursday was generating southern winds in Puerto Rico, which have a heating effect as opposed to the typical cooling trade winds that blow from the east.

“We know a lot of people don’t have power,” said Ernesto Morales with the National Weather Service as he warned of extreme heat and urged people to stay hydrated.

Nearly half a million of 1.4 million total customers remained in the dark more than a day after Ernesto, then still a tropical storm, powered past Puerto Rico late Tuesday.

Hundreds of thousands of people also are without water given the power outages.

The situation worried many who lived through Hurricane Maria, a powerful Category 4 storm that hit Puerto Rico in September 2017 and was blamed for at least 2,975 deaths in its sweltering aftermath.

The National Weather Service issued a heat advisory on Thursday warning of “dangerously hot and humid conditions.”

Officials said they don’t know when power will be fully restored as concerns grow about the health of many in Puerto Rico who cannot afford generators or solar panels on the island of 3.2 million people with a more than 40% poverty rate.

Crews were still assessing the situation, although no catastrophic damage has been identified, said Juan Saca, president of Luma Energy, a private company that operates the transmission and distribution of power in Puerto Rico.

When pressed for an estimate of when power would be restored, Alejandro González, Luma’s operations director, declined to say.

“It would be irresponsible to provide an exact date,” he said at a news conference late Wednesday.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Originally Published: August 15, 2024 at 8:35 a.m.