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Tropical Weather Summary (Text)

000
ABNT30 KNHC 011159
TWSAT 
MONTHLY TROPICAL WEATHER SUMMARY
NWS TPC/NATIONAL HURRICANE CENTER MIAMI FL
800 AM EDT FRI SEP 1 2006
 
FOR THE NORTH ATLANTIC...CARIBBEAN SEA AND THE GULF OF MEXICO...
 
THREE TROPICAL CYCLONES...TROPICAL STORM CHRIS...TROPICAL STORM
DEBBY...AND HURRICANE ERNESTO...DEVELOPED IN THE ATLANTIC BASIN
DURING AUGUST.  THE NUMBER OF TROPICAL STORMS IN AUGUST IS CLOSE TO
AVERAGE BUT THE OCCURANCE OF ONLY ONE HURRICANE IS BELOW AVERAGE.  

TROPICAL STORM CHRIS DEVELOPED FROM A TROPICAL WAVE AND BECAME A
TROPICAL DEPRESSION EARLY ON 1 AUGUST ABOUT 200 MILES EAST OF THE
LEEWARD ISLANDS. MOVING WEST-NORTHWESTWARD...THE DEPRESSION BECAME
A TROPICAL STORM A FEW HOURS LATER. EARLY ON 2 AUGUST THE STORM
REACHED ITS PEAK INTENSITY OF 65 MPH WHILE CENTERED ABOUT 50 MILES
NORTH OF THE NORTHERNMOST LEEWARD ISLANDS. HOWEVER...EARLY ON 3
AUGUST...THE STORM ABRUPTLY WEAKENED AS THE MID-LEVEL CIRCULATION
SEPARATED FROM THE LOW-LEVEL CENTER IN AN ENVIRONMENT OF STRONG
VERTICAL WIND SHEAR. THE SYSTEM CONTINUED WESTWARD AND WEAKENED TO
A TROPICAL DEPRESSION ON 4 AUGUST NEAR THE TURKS AND CAICOS...AND
IT DISSIPATED EARLY THE NEXT DAY WHILE APPROACHING CUBA.

DEBBY DEVELOPED FROM A TROPICAL WAVE IN THE FAR EASTERN ATLANTIC
ABOUT 250 MILES SOUTHEAST OF THE CAPE VERDE ISLANDS ON 21 AUGUST. 
AFTER BECOMING A DEPRESSION...IT MOVED WEST-NORTHWESTWARD...PASSING
ABOUT 100 MILES TO THE SOUTHWEST OF THE ISLANDS ON 22 AUGUST. 
EARLY ON 23 AUGUST THE DEPRESSION BECAME A TROPICAL STORM ABOUT 300
MILES WEST OF THE CAPE VERDE ISLANDS...AND ITS WINDS REACHED 50 MPH
LATER THAT DAY.  DEBBY MOVED WEST-NORTHWESTWARD WITH LITTLE CHANGE
IN STRENGTH OVER THE NEXT COUPLE OF DAYS...BUT IT BEGAN TO WEAKEN ON
25 AUGUST IN RESPONSE TO SOUTHERLY WIND SHEAR.  DEBBY WEAKENED TO A
DEPRESSION THE NEXT DAY...THEN TURNED NORTHWARD AND DISSIPATED ON
27 AUGUST AHEAD OF AN APPROACHING FRONTAL SYSTEM.

ERNESTO ORIGINATED FROM A TROPICAL WAVE AND BECAME A TROPICAL
DEPRESSION ON 24 AUGUST AS IT WAS PASSING OVER THE WINDWARD
ISLANDS. IT STRENGTHENED INTO A TROPICAL STORM THE NEXT MORNING
OVER THE EASTERN CARIBBEAN SEA WHILE CENTERED ABOUT 300 MILES SOUTH
OF PUERTO RICO. CONTINUING WEST-NORTHWESTWARD... ERNESTO SLOWLY
STRENGTHENED AND HAD MAXIMUM WINDS OF 50 MPH BY THE NEXT MORNING.
THE STORM TURNED NORTHWESTWARD ON 26 AUGUST OVER THE CENTRAL
CARIBBEAN AND CONTINUED TO INTENSIFY. EARLY ON THE MORNING OF 27
AUGUST...WHILE CENTERED ABOUT 70 MILES SOUTH OF THE SOUTHERN COAST
OF HAITI...ERNESTO WAS BRIEFLY A HURRICANE WITH MAXIMUM WINDS OF 75
MPH. ERNESTO STEADILY WEAKENED DURING THE NEXT DAY AS IT PASSED
VERY NEAR THE SOUTHWESTERN TIP OF HAITI. THE STORM THEN MADE
LANDFALL ON THE SOUTHEASTERN COAST OF CUBA JUST WEST OF GUANTANAMO
BAY AS A TROPICAL STORM WITH 40 MPH MAXIMUM WINDS. ERNESTO TURNED
NORTHWESTWARD AND ITS CENTER REMAINED OVER CUBA FOR ABOUT 18
HOURS...AND EMERGED OFF THE NORTH-CENTRAL COAST EARLY ON 29 AUGUST.
THE STORM CONTINUED NORTHWESTWARD WITH LITTLE CHANGE IN STRENGTH
AND MADE LANDFALL IN EXTREME SOUTHERN FLORIDA EARLY ON 30 AUGUST
WITH 45 MPH MAXIMUM WINDS. ERNESTO WEAKENED TO A DEPRESSION LATER
THAT DAY WHILE MOVING NORTHWARD OVER THE FLORIDA PENINSULA. AFTER
DEPARTING THE EAST COAST OF FLORIDA NEAR CAPE CANAVERAL EARLY ON 31
AUGUST...ERNESTO STRENGTHENED OVER THE WARM WATERS OF THE ATLANTIC
WHILE HEADING NORTHEASTWARD. AT THE VERY END OF THE MONTH...THE
CENTER OF ERNESTO WAS ABOUT TO MAKE LANDFALL NEAR LONG BEACH NORTH
CAROLINA AS A STRONG TROPICAL STORM WITH MAXIMUM SUSTAINED WINDS OF
70 MPH.

SUMMARY TABLE

NAME             DATES        MAX WIND   DEATHS   U.S. DAMAGE
                                MPH                $MILLION
---------------------------------------------------------------
TS CHRIS        1-5  AUG         65         0          0
TS DEBBY       21-27 AUG         50         0          0
H ERNESTO      24 AUG -          75         *          *
--------------------------------------------------------------
NOTE...DATES BASED ON COORDINATED UNIVERSAL TIME (UTC)
* UNKNOWN AT THIS TIME
  
$$
FORECASTER KNABB/FRANKLIN/BLAKE