Hurricane Ernesto aims for Bermuda after leaving nearly half a million without power in Puerto Rico
The National Hurricane Center posted a hurricane warning for Bermuda early Thursday with Hurricane Ernesto's eye expected to pass near or over the island on Saturday. The storm is headed that way after dumping torrential downpours on Puerto Rico and heavy rains on the Virgin Islands that has left hundreds of thousands of people without power.
Puerto Rico's electricity provider, LUMA Energy, said nearly 470,00 people were without power as of 7:40 a.m. ET on Thursday.
Ernesto developed just days after Debby finished its move along the U.S. East Coast, where it left at least eight people dead, including children, as a Category 1 hurricane-turned-tropical storm.
According to utility tracker PowerOutage.us, just under 28,800 customers in the U.S. Virgin Islands were without electricity early Thursday, down from a peak of about 46,000 on Wednesday.
Ernesto was about 635 miles south-southwest of Bermuda and heading north at 13 mph early Thursday with maximum sustained winds of 85 mph, the hurricane center said.
"On the forecast track, the center of Ernesto is expected to pass near or over Bermuda on Saturday. Strengthening is forecast during the next day or two, and Ernesto could become a major hurricane by Friday. Ernesto is forecast to be a large hurricane near Bermuda on Saturday," the Miami-based center said.
A hurricane gets classified as major when it reaches Category 3, with winds of 111 mph or higher.
CBS News senior weather and climate producer David Parkinson said Thursday that Ernesto "should top out as a Category 3 major hurricane" on Friday before it slightly weakens near Bermuda.
"Landfall is still in the realm of possibility, but it's more likely the center of the storm will stay about 50 miles offshore," he said, adding that the biggest impact to people will be the waves Ernesto causes. Rip currents are also a concern, with New York's Long Island expecting a moderate risk later Thursday.
"Waves could be as high as 8-10 feet at some beaches, and will be at least 10-20 feet out over open ocean," Parkinson said. "The large waves and rips last through the weekend and until the storm makes its final landfall in Atlantic Canada early next week."
NOAA forecasters said "beachgoers should be aware of a significant risk of life-threatening surf and rip currents, and stay out of the water if advised by lifeguards."
The National Hurricane Center that Bermuda will see a "dangerous storm surge" that will produce significant coastal flooding and destructive waves. The island nation will see about half a foot of rain and in some areas, up to a foot, possibly resulting in "considerable life-threatening flash flooding."
Rivers across Puerto Rico were swollen after nearly 10 inches of rain. At least 23 Puerto Rico hospitals were operating on generators, while all schools were closed. There were road closures across the island due to downed trees and power lines.
Officials were forced to open flood gates at a dam along the La Plata River. Sirens warned residents in nearby municipality of Toa Baja to evacuate their homes in case of flooding.
Puerto Rico's power grid was wiped out in 2017 by Hurricane Maria, which slammed the island as a strong Category 4 storm.
"The government today is much better prepared," said Juan Saca, president and CEO of LUMA Energy. "… We have a plan that you can go into our website and take a look at the plan."
President Biden approved an emergency declaration for Puerto Rico, the White House said Tuesday night, authorizing FEMA to help with storm recovery.
Ernesto remained a tropical storm through most of Tuesday morning, reaching hurricane status once its winds reached the minimum 74 mph for that classification on Wedneaday, as measured by the Saffir-Simpson Wind Scale. That scale doesn't account for a storm's size, speed, precipitation or storm surge, all of which pose additional dangers.
Ernesto is the fifth named storm so far of the Atlantic hurricane season, which has already proven to be historic after Beryl reached record strength at the beginning of the season in above-average temperatures of the Gulf of Mexico.
NOAA has predicted an above-normal season, with 17-25 named storms, eight to 13 hurricanes, and four to seven major hurricanes.
The fifth-named storm typically doesn't form until Aug. 22, according to NOAA.
Editor's Note: Due to an editing error, an earlier version of this story reported 975,000 customers had lost power in Puerto Rico, but that was the number of customers who still had power, according to Puerto Rico's electricity provider.
