Tropical Wave Off Africa Raises Storm Watch in Atlantic

The National Hurricane Center is closely monitoring a tropical wave currently located off the west coast of Africa in the eastern tropical Atlantic.

The weather system is producing a large area of scattered showers and thunderstorms, although it remains disorganised at present.

The National Hurricane Center says environmental conditions could allow the system to gradually develop over the coming week. There is a medium chance, around 40 percent, that it could strengthen into a tropical depression by the middle or latter part of next week. The system is expected to move west-northwest at 15 to 20 miles per hour across the eastern and central tropical Atlantic.

NOAA says residents of the Cabo Verde Islands should be prepared for locally heavy rainfall on Sunday and Monday as the system passes nearby.

At this stage, the chance of the wave developing into a tropical cyclone within the next 48 hours remains very low, close to zero percent. However, NOAA says it will continue to watch its progress closely and provide updates as the situation evolves.

While tropical storms rarely impact Ireland directly, the development of systems in the Atlantic is closely followed here as they can influence weather patterns across the Atlantic basin.