Puerto Rico, with a hurricane warning by Fiona 3:18
(CNN) --
Tropical Storm Fiona could become a hurricane by the time it reaches Puerto Rico on Sunday, bringing with it threats of flooding and landslides, according to the latest update from the National Hurricane Center.
The storm, which is already heading for Puerto Rico about 128 kilometers south of the city of Ponce, is moving west with sustained winds of 104 km/h, and heavy rains and tropical storm force winds are already occurring in the US Virgin Islands and much of Puerto.
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Based on the current forecast, the center of Fiona is expected to move closer Sunday morning before moving near or over southwestern Puerto Rico this afternoon or evening.
Parts of Puerto Rico could see up to 25 inches of rain as Tropical Storm Fiona approaches.
The impacts are already being felt, with more than 90,000 customers in Puerto Rico without power as of 7:30 a.m. ET on Sunday, according to PowerOutage.us.
On St. Croix, a Teagues Bay weather station reported a 94 km/h wind gust, while the Henry E. Rohlsen Airport reported a 88 km/h wind gust.
Very heavy rains of 304 to 406 millimeters are forecast in a wide swath of Puerto Rico.
Most of the rain is expected on Sunday and isolated spots in southern and eastern Puerto Rico could see up to 635mm, according to the hurricane center.
The northern and eastern Dominican Republic are also forecast to see 101 to 203mm of rain, with isolated totals of up to 304mm possible.
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The Atlantic hurricane season has been exceptionally quiet.
Why?
"These rains will produce life-threatening flash flooding and urban flooding in Puerto Rico and the eastern Dominican Republic, along with landslides and landslides in areas of higher ground," the hurricane center said.
Current forecast for Storm Fiona across the Atlantic.
Storm surge poses another threat and could raise water levels 30 to 90 centimeters above normal tide levels along the southern coast of Puerto Rico and in the Dominican Republic, where onshore winds will be strongest. .
A hurricane warning, indicating that hurricane conditions are expected, was issued for Puerto Rico, including the islands of Vieques and Culebra, and was later expanded to include the eastern Dominican Republic from Cabo Caucedo to Cabo Francés Viejo.
The US Virgin Islands and the northern coast of the Dominican Republic, from Cabo Francés Viejo west to Puerto Plata, are under a hurricane watch Sunday morning, meaning hurricane conditions are possible in the next 48 hours.
Rain accumulation forecast due to tropical storm Fiona.
The threat will not end once the storm passes between Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic: further strengthening is forecast and the storm could become a Category 2 hurricane as it moves east of the Bahamas, where the government has issued a warning. tropical storm for the southeastern Bahamas and a tropical storm warning or the Turks and Caicos Islands.
Tropical storm conditions are possible in the Turks and Caicos Islands and the southeastern Bahamas by Monday night or early Tuesday.
CNN Meteorologist Derek Van Dam contributed to this report.
