Oct. 8, 2004 – Tropical Storm Matthew formed late Friday afternoon in the Gulf of Mexico, but will pose no threat to the Virgin Islands. Instead, forecasters currently think it will head toward the Florida Panhandle and other nearby states with Gulf Coast shorelines as a tropical storm.
However, Brad Diehl, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service in San Juan, warned that we're not out of the woods yet when it comes to hurricane season. It runs through Nov. 30
Diehl said tropical waves are continuing to pop off the African coast for a trip across the Atlantic Ocean.
"But there's nothing of real interest for the immediate future," he said.
He said forecasters are watching a developing low-pressure area located at about 25 degrees north longitude and 60 degrees west latitude, which is well north of the Virgin Islands.
"It's no threat to the local area," he said.
If that low-pressure area becomes a named storm, it will be called Nicole.
Meanwhile, the Virgin Islands can expect scattered showers over the weekend, with the chance of thunderstorms developing in the afternoon.
"Some of the thunderstorms could be locally heavy," Diehl said.
He doesn't expect any increase in the almost dead calm that has stuck around for the past couple of days.
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