WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — In the tropics, the WPTV First Alert Weather team is closely watching a system located in the central Caribbean for possible tropical development.
Right now, the National Hurricane Center is giving an area of unsettled weather, currently located between Haiti and the southwestern Caribbean Sea, a high chance for development in the long term.
"It has a 90% chance of developing later this week into Friday and Saturday," WPTV First Alert Weather chief meteorologist Steve Weagle said.
WATCH BELOW: Steve Weagle explains why Florida should keep an eye on this tropical system
There is a strong trough that will develop in the middle of next week that could turn it toward Florida.
"It's definitely one that we have to watch closely," Weagle said.
TRACKING THE TROPICS: Hurricane Center | Hurricane Guide
WPTV First Alert Weather meteorologist Frances Peyton said there is a lot of disagreement with the computer models where this system, known as Invest 99-L, could go.
The GFS American model is very aggressive, bringing a strong system to the west coast of Florida by late next week.
The European model is in agreement with the stalling near Cuba. However, the Euro currently has the system remaining south of us.
The ICON model, another popular model to track the tropics, takes this low pressure to the Yucatan Peninsula and weakens over the western Gulf of Mexico by the middle of next week.
"Eventually, it's gonna get better organized as it tracks slowly toward the west, toward Central America," WPTV First Alert Weather meteorologist Jennifer Correa said. "Once it gets into those western Caribbean Sea waters, it does have a very good chance to become at least the next tropical storm."
Correa said the wave will likely become a tropical depression by Friday or over the weekend, then a named storm, Sara, and then possibly intensify further as we go into next week.
It may meander around the Caribbean for a few days first before going anywhere, Correa added.
Stay with the WPTV First Alert Weather team as we continue to monitor further development of this system.
