Tropical Storm Chantal was still a tropical storm on Wednesday, according to the National Hurricane Center in Miami.
As of 11 a.m., Chantal's maximum sustained winds were 45 mph as it moved west at 29 mph. It was located about 355 miles east-southeast of Kingston, Jamaica and about 145 miles south of Port Au Prince, Haiti.
The center of Chantal will be near or over Hispaniola later Wednesday and near or over eastern Cuba by early Thursday, though weakening is forecast during the next 48 hours.
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Because of Chantal's westward movement and a shift in the model runs due to the storm’s position, the forecast cone was pulled westward across South Florida again.
This shift in the cone by the National Hurricane Center represents the potential for a tropical depression to be in the vicinity on Friday. This may not come to fruition if the storm is ripped apart by land interaction and strong wind shear.
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In fact, it is possible that if a the storm succumbs to strong wind shear, the National Hurricane Center could seize advisories altogether later Wednesday.
A tropical storm warning was in effect for the coasts of the Dominican Republic and Haiti, Turks and Caicos and the southeastern Bahamas. A tropical storm watch was in effect for the central Bahamas and Jamaica.
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Photo Credit: National Hurricane Center