First Atlantic Tropical Storm of the Year, ANA Heads Toward the Leeward Islands

First Atlantic tropical storm of the year forms.

Tropical storm Ana has formed over the Atlantic and become the first named storm of the season. According to The National Hurricane Center, TD#2 was upgraded to a Tropical Storm and it presently has sustainable winds of 40 mph and is headed toward The Leeward Islands.

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Ana is a very weak storm at this point and although the forecast cone right now is pointed straight at Florida by Thursday morning, there are still many factors yet to play out in the future of this storm. 

Ana’s forecast intensity is to become a strong tropical storm 4 to 5 days out.  However, this is the middle of the road approach in terms of forecasts since the models are nowhere near agreement with her future.

NOLA

Ana, the first named storm of the Atlantic season, could slowly strengthen in the next couple of days as it moves to the west at 16 mph. Maximum sustained winds are near 40 mph.

At 4 a.m. local time, the center of Tropical Storm Ana was located near latitude 14.6 north, longitude 46.8 west, or about 1,010 miles east of the Leeward Islands.

Forecasters said it was too early to tell if Ana will present a threat to the United States mainland, but the five-day forecast from the National Hurricane Center currently puts the storm near the coast of Florida by Thursday morning.