A tropical storm warning signal has been issued by the Government of Bahamas for the southeastern part of the country as well as the Turks and Caicos Islands, as Tropical Storm Erika maintains a westward trajectory.
The storm started to disturb the Virgin Islands Thursday night, and is expected to head toward Puerto Rico before moving near or over the Dominican Republic area of responsibility on Friday.
Erika remains to move on a westerly track as of 8 p.m. tonight, and a possible slight turn toward the west-northwest direction in an almost 12 mph (19 km) speed is projected to continue over the coming 48-hour period.
The storm has maximum sustained winds of 45 mph with higher gusts, and its force winds extend outward up to 140 miles from the center. It is expected to produce four to eight inches of rainfall, with a possibility of reaching up to 12 inches.
Tropical Storm Erika already passed the Caribbean island of Dominica with heavy rains Thursday. It caused heavy flooding in several roads, and swamped villages. Dominica Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit reported on social media that a number of people were missing because of the floods.
The Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency released an update, saying that at least 30 people are missing, while a police official relayed to the Associated Press that at least four people are already confirmed dead due to the severe flooding and mudslides in the country.
Erika is expected to intensify over the coming hours and days which could affect its possible direction. At the moment, the storm has the possibility of becoming a Category 1 Hurricane as it begins to hound the Southern Bahamas.
The tropical storm is also projected to reach hurricane status with 75 mph sustained winds while it heads toward the South Florida path on Monday.
