A tropical wave over the eastern Caribbean Sea is expected to develop into the Atlantic’s 13th named storm of the 2025 hurricane season, the National Hurricane Center (NHC) has said.

The system, designated AL98, is moving westward at 24 to 32 km/h towards the central Caribbean and is forecast to slow down over the coming days.

Environmental conditions are becoming increasingly favourable for tropical development, with the NHC giving the system a 50% chance of forming within 48 hours and an 80% chance over the next seven days.

While heavy rainfall and gusty winds affecting the Windward and Leeward Islands are subsiding, the ABC Islands could see an uptick in adverse weather over the next few days. Authorities in the region have been urged to monitor updates and heed any High Seas or Gale Warnings issued by the National Weather Service.

If Melissa forms, it will mark the 13th named storm of an active 2025 Atlantic hurricane season.

So far this year, most Atlantic storms have veered away from the populated Caribbean islands, leaving much of the region largely unscathed.