Hurricane Ernesto threatens Bermuda with severe weather

Hurricane Ernesto barrelled towards Bermuda on Thursday, threatening severe winds, a dangerous storm surge, and heavy rainfall over the weekend. The storm left hundreds of thousands in Puerto Rico without power. Currently a Category 1 hurricane, Ernesto is expected to strengthen considerably before reaching Bermuda late on Friday, according to the National Hurricane Center (NHC). As of 5 p.m. ET on Thursday, Ernesto was positioned 495 miles southwest of Bermuda, moving north with winds of 85 miles per hour.

The NHC forecasts that Ernesto will intensify significantly, potentially reaching major hurricane strength by Friday. A major hurricane falls into Category 3, 4, or 5 on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale, posing a threat of devastating or catastrophic damage. The NHC advised preparations to safeguard life and property should be completed urgently.

By Saturday, Ernesto is expected to become a “large hurricane,” with its centre passing near or over Bermuda. The storm could bring up to 15 inches of rain, strong winds, flash flooding, and a dangerous storm surge. Bermuda, an archipelago of 181 islands with a population of 64,000, has only experienced direct landfall from 11 storms since 1851. Hurricanes Gonzalo in 2014 and Fabian in 2003 were the most damaging in recent history, causing significant financial losses and widespread power outages. Fabian was particularly deadly, causing four fatalities, the first storm-related deaths in Bermuda since 1926.

Ernesto transitioned from a tropical storm to a hurricane on Wednesday after impacting Puerto Rico with heavy rain. Images from Puerto Rico showed flooded roadways, downed powerlines, and damaged homes and vehicles. By midday Thursday, approximately 410,000 homes and businesses in Puerto Rico, about a quarter of the total, remained without electricity, reported LUMA Energy, the island’s primary power supplier.

San Juan resident Vanessa Toro, who lost power early Wednesday morning, expressed frustration at the prolonged outage, especially given the storm’s limited impact on her area. “If the event had been of a large magnitude, one understands the situation a little more, but this storm was not catastrophic,” she said. LUMA CEO Juan Saca indicated in a radio interview that he anticipated power restoration for many customers later on Thursday.

Puerto Rico’s power grid is notoriously fragile. In 2022, Hurricane Fiona disrupted power for about 80% of the island for up to a month, and Hurricanes Irma and Maria in 2017 caused outages that lasted nearly a year in some areas. Ernesto is expected to stay west of the U.S. East Coast but will likely generate life-threatening surf and rip currents.

Ernesto is the fifth named storm in what is predicted to be an intense Atlantic hurricane season. Just last week, Hurricane Debby hit Florida’s Gulf Coast as a Category 1 hurricane, bringing heavy rain to parts of the Carolinas. Hurricane Beryl, the first of the season, became the earliest recorded Category 5 storm in the Atlantic, causing significant damage in the Caribbean and Texas Gulf Coast, resulting in dozens of deaths and an estimated $6 billion in damages.