From UPI

Sept. 12 (UPI) — Tropical Storm Isaac is weakening in the Caribbean, meteorologists said Wednesday.

Isaac had recorded maximum sustained winds of 60 mph and is moving west at 15 mph, the National Hurricane Center said Wednesday morning.

Forecasters said Isaac should regain hurricane strength as it reaches the Lesser Antilles.

The storm was about 450 miles east of the island of Martinique as of the NHC’s 5 a.m. advisory.

Forecasters said Isaac could bring as many as 10 inches of rain to some locations, 2 to 4 feet of storm surge, and life-threatening surf conditions.

A tropical storm warning was issued for the islands of Martinique, Dominica and Guadaloupe, with a tropical storm warning for Antigua, Monserrat, St. Kitts and Nevis and Saba and St. Eustatius. Hurricane watches in Dominica, Martinique and Guadeloupe were discontinued, and the Netherlands government issued a tropical storm watch for Saba and St. Eustatius.

Meteorologists said residents in the Caribbean — including Puerto Rico, Hispaniola, Cuba, Jamaica and the Bahamas — and the United States mainland should stay aware of Isaac’s path beyond the Lesser Antilles.

A westward motion with a slight increase in forward speed is expected through the end of the week. Isaac is expected to move across the Lesser Antilles and into the eastern Caribbean Sea Thursday.

Tropical-storm force winds extend outward up to 105 miles from the center, the NHC said on Wednesday.

No coastal watches or warnings are in effect in the United States, and the NHC forecast track shows the storm heading west towards Central America. It is not expected to impact the United States coast.

IMAGE: Tropical Storm Isaac is seen in the Caribbean Wednesday as it heads toward Central America. Image courtesy NOAA

For more on this story go to: https://www.upi.com/Tropical-Storm-Isaac-weakens-in-Caribbean/5511536496835/

From Weather Underground:

Isaac: A hurricane watch was in effect for Guadeloupe, Martinique, and Dominica, and a tropical storm watch for Antigua, Montserrat, St. Kitts, and Nevis, in advance of Tropical Storm Isaac. Located about 600 miles east of the Lesser Antilles at 5 pm EDT Tuesday with top sustained winds of 70 mph, Isaac continued to cruise west at about 17 mph, a pace that would bring it across the Lesser Antilles early Thursday. Isaac is facing a mixed bag of influences on its intensity, including outflow from Florence. As a small system, Isaac could easily strengthen or weaken quickly, so the best course is to assume Isaac will hold firm and reach the islands as a strong tropical storm or perhaps a Category 1 hurricane.

The European and GFS models keep Isaac heading west into the central Caribbean into Saturday, while several other models peel the storm off toward the north. Some runs of the higher-resolution HWRF regional model have Isaac strengthening sharply on such a northward track, but it’s too soon to trust such outlooks at this point, especially with the global models much weaker.

For more on this story go to: https://www.wunderground.com/cat6/Hurricane-Storm-Surge-Warnings-Carolinas-Florence-May-Stall-Near-Coast

ADDITIONAL IMAGES: Weathernerds