Ernesto strengthened into a hurricane on Wednesday as it dropped torrential rain on Puerto Rico and left nearly half of all clients in the U.S. territory without power as it threatened to strengthen into a major storm en route to Bermuda.
The storm was located about 290 kilometres east of Grand Turk Island, and was moving over open waters. It had maximum sustained winds of 120 km/h and was moving northwest at 26 km/h. "The official forecast still reflects the possibility of Ernesto becoming a major hurricane in about 48 hours," the U.
S. National Hurricane Center said Wednesday. A car drives through debris in the aftermath of Tropical Storm Ernesto in Humacao, Puerto Rico, on Wednesday.
(Ricardo Arduengo/Reuters) Ernesto is also expected to turn north on a path that could potentially include Atlantic Canada, according to the Weather Network . "While it's still far too early to say, some long-range models do suggest that Ernesto could pass near enough to the Canadian East Coast to bring heavy rainfall early to mid-next week," the Weather Network said in an update Wednesday morning. Storm track could change, but Ernesto currently targeting Maritimes CBC meteorologist Tina Simpkin noted this is a very early forecast.
"That track could change, but right now it does take it brushing by, at least, the Nova Scotia coastline and that would put P.E.I.
in the track for some high winds and some heavy rains," said Simpkin. The Canadian Hurricane Centre currently forecasts Ernesto to be so.