Oranjestad/The Bottom- A Tropical Storm Watch is in effect for St. Eustatius and Saba. As of 5:00 PM today, Friday August 13th, Tropical Depression Seven was centered about 675 miles East of the Leeward Islands, heading west at 22 mph, with sustained winds of 35mph.

Tropical Storm Grace will pass near Statia Sunday morning around 8:00am. KNMI-forecast shows Statia has a 20-30% chance to receive tropical storm force winds (34kn, 39mph) beginning Sunday morning around 8:00am.

St. Eustatius

The Government of St. Eustatius warns for heavy rain and high winds with risk of erosion (lower town), flash floods possible, mudslides and snapping trees is the main concern.

Parking restriction on the Queen Beatrix Street and the Fort Oranje Street, due to the steady flow of water and rocks during periods of heavy rainfall. Government says authorities on the island will continue to monitor the further progress of this weather system and will take all necessary measures to safeguard life and property.

Saba

On Saba Governor Johnson also updated residents about the approaching storm. While Johson advised the population not to panic, he also promised he would give further updates on the weather system on Saturday. “As I mentioned, earlier tropical depression number 7 has a lot of rain. Although it is still a tropical depression, I would advise you to treat it as if it’s a hurricane. We know from the last years that these systems can develop very quickly”, said Johnson on Friday evening.