By Alex Sosnowski, AccuWeather senior meteorologist
July 18,2017, 11:51:37PM,EDT
The former tropical storm weakened after crossing the Windward Islands and is not expected to regain strength as it drifts into the Caribbean Sea this week.
Don strengthened into a tropical storm on Monday evening but was quickly torn apart by strong winds high up in the atmosphere on Tuesday night.
Don followed Tropical Storm Bret from late June.
Despite the storm weakening, people on the islands of Trinidad and Tobago, Aruba, Bonaire and Curacao can expect a period of drenching rain, gusty winds and rough seas through Wednesday.
Showers and thunderstorms will cruise westward over the southern Caribbean and brush the northern coasts of Venezuela and Colombia during Wednesday and Thursday.
The greatest risks on the islands will be from strong winds in thunderstorms that could down trees, cause minor property damage and trigger sporadic power outages.
"Fast movement of the tropical storm should limit rainfall to 2-4 inches (50-100 mm) with locally higher amounts," AccuWeather Hurricane Expert Dan Kottlowski said.
There will be the risk of flash and urban flooding.
CNC3-TV in Trinidad and Tobago reported that several ferry crossings on Tuesday and Wednesday were canceled due to Don. Caribbean airliner LIAT announced Tuesday that weather was affecting operations in the southern Caribbean and numerous flights were canceled due to the storm.
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Small craft in the area should monitor the situation and may need to remain in port until the system has passed to the west later this week.
Bathers are urged to exercise caution and heed all warnings until the system has moved by. Unprotected waters will be prone to increasing rip currents and building surf.
Westerly winds are likely to prevent Don from reaching the United States.
Second Atlantic tropical system may approach Leeward Islands
Elsewhere in the Atlantic, another area of disturbed weather, dubbed 96L, was located several hundred miles farther east of former Tropical Storm Don and is likely to take a more northwesterly path.
Interests over the Leeward Islands should monitor the progress of this system.
"During Friday night and Saturday morning, 96L may be close to the Leeward Islands," Kottlowski said.
This second system has a few days before it moves into dry air and disruptive winds aloft, which will likely lead to its demise.
Elsewhere in the tropics, multiple systems are brewing in the eastern Pacific. Fernanda may approach Hawaii this weekend.
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