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| Radar image shows the eye of Hurricane Fiona and torrential rains spreading into Puerto Rico. |
We'll take 'em one at a time, with Vermont up last. I always save the best for last.
FIONA
What was Tropical Storm Fiona had struggled with strong upper level winds that prevented it from developing into a proper hurricane. Wouldn't you know right before Fiona gets to hapless Puerto Rico, it gets its act together.
Puerto Rico is still trying to recover from 2017's devastating Hurricane Maria and a series of strong earthquakes since 2019 along the south coast of the island.
As of late this morning, Fiona's top winds had increased to 80 mph, so it is now a full-fledged hurricane. The hurricane should come ashore in Puerto Rico later today.
Winds will be destructive, and Puerto Rico's rickety power grid has already partially failed in the storm. However, the main problem with Fiona will be the rains. Most of Puerto Rico should receive five to 10 inches of rain with a few spots closing in on 20 inches.
This will naturally cause big time flash floods and mudslides in the U.S. territory. Fiona will move on to clip the Dominican Republic with more flash floods and land slides tonight and tomorrow.
From there, Fiona is forecast to strengthen further east of the Bahamas. For those of you who hate the idea of a powerful hurricane hitting the U.S. East Coast, some good news: A strong cold front that will bring frost to northern New England late this week will also nudge Fiona to the north and east, keeping it over open water far off the coast.
JAPAN TYPHOON
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| Satellite view of Typhoon Nanmadol on approach to Japan. |
Super Typhoon Nanmadol is set to strike the southernmost of Japan's main islands with wind gusts exceeding 150 mph and 20 or more inches of rain. The winds are expected to be enough to collapse some houses. Meteorologists fear the flooding will be catastrophic.
The typhoon is also forecast to move over the megalopolis of Tokyo. Though winds will have diminished a little by the time Nanmadol reaches Tokyo, it still would be destructive.
Japan has ordered large scale evacuations from coastal areas ahead of an expected destructive storm surge. At least four million people had been evacuated as the storm was making landfall this morning.
Japan is well prepared for typhoons, but you can only do so much when a storm is this powerful.
ALASKA STORM
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| Screen grab from a web cam of Nome, Alaska Saturday shows an angry Pacific Ocean with waves crashing into the town. |
Former typhoon Merbok has caused some of the worst storm damage western Alaska has ever seen. The storm's size is immense - at least the size of the entire state.
Villages along much of Alaska's west coast have already been experiencing episodes of flooding and severe coastal erosion due to sea level rise and more powerful storms induced by climate change.
This storm is worsening things exponentially. Photos on social media depict entire villages under water, with some houses and buildings swept away. A web cam from Nome shows enormous Pacific Ocean waves, some of which were crashing into oceanfront streets. Many villages along more than a 400 miles stretch of Alaska's west coast received extensive damage.
VERMONT SOAKING
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| National Weather Service office in South Burlington has released this rainfall forecast map through Monday, showing more than two inches of rain in norther Vermont. Lines depict their prediction of rain onset today. |
It's not a hurricane. Or a typhoon. Or a mega storm. Instead, the culprit is a stalling front near the International border, lots of moisture from the Gulf of Mexico and disturbances riding along the front could easily dump three or more inches of rain at least a few towns.
Vermont somehow escaped flash flooding from last Tuesday's episode of heavy rain. This time, if any strings of downpours repeatedly hit a particular spot in the Green Mountain State, we might not be so lucky.
Before we get ahead ourselves, for most of us, the heavy rain will be good news. Despite recent rains, we could still use more rain to erase the dry conditions that built up all summer. Of course, southern Vermont is most in need of rain, but this next episode is mostly going to drench northern Vermont.
The first round of rain was coming at us from the north and west late this morning and it will be rainy Sunday afternoon and evening. Some of the rain could come down pretty hard in northern areas, but it won't be anything extreme. Don't worry about any local flooding or washouts today.
By late tonight, northern areas should have received a half inch to an inch of rain. Southern Vermont should only get a quarter inch or so.
Consider today a pre-soak.
Monday, the rain should come down harder, especially in the afternoon. We might see some embedded thunderstorms as well. One or two of those storms could be on the strong side, so most of Vermont is under a marginal risk (level one of five) of severe storms.
The main issue will be the rains. The air will be plenty humid. The nearly stalled front with disturbances riding along it will really be efficient at dropping a good amount of rain.
Between now and late Monday night, most of northern Vermont should have received more than two inches of rain. That amount would be beneficial, and not create any real flooding concerns.
The problem is, much like last Tuesday, certain areas could really over-perform and receive three or even four inches of rain. It would be a rather small area, and we don't know exactly where. Since the ground is wetter than it was a week ago, it will be a little easier for washouts and some local flooding to creep in.
Not a guarantee, but a possibility. If we do see any flooding, it wouldn't be an Irene-style calamity, but still something to watch out for. We'll have more details on this Monday morning.
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