Tropical Storm Erin forms as the fifth named storm of the season in the Eastern Atlantic, as we continue to track its development.
MIAMI – Tropical Storm Erin formed in the central Atlantic Ocean on Monday morning and is forecast to become the first major hurricane of the 2025 Atlantic hurricane season after causing at least seven deaths in the Cabo Verde islands off the coast of Africa.
The National Hurricane Center (NHC) said that maximum sustained winds within Tropical Storm Erin remained at 45 mph with some higher gusts.
HOW TO WATCH FOX WEATHER
(FOX Weather)
A tropical storm is a tropical cyclone that has maximum sustained winds of 39-73 mph and is a step above a tropical depression.
Tropical Storm Erin is located about 560 miles west-northwest of the Cabo Verde islands and was moving off to the west at 22 mph.
That motion is expected to continue for the next several days with a gradual slowdown in forward speed and a turn to the west-northwest.
DOWNLOAD THE FREE FOX WEATHER APP
(FOX Weather)
Tropical Storm Erin is expected to gradually strengthen and is expected to become a hurricane in the next few days.
The latest forecast track shows Erin moving north of Puerto Rico by this weekend with gradual strengthening to a hurricane. Erin could become the first major hurricane of the 2025 Atlantic hurricane season if it reaches Category 3 strength. A hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 111-129 mph is considered to be a Category 3 cyclone on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale.
At least 7 dead in Cabo Verde islands
Before becoming Tropical Storm Erin, the system brought torrential rain and thunderstorms to the Cabo Verde, or Cape Verde, islands when it was Invest 97L.
-
Flooding damage on the island of São Vicente, Cape Verde on Aug. 11, 2025.
(Angelo Barbosa/Facebook) -
Flooding damage on the island of São Vicente, Cape Verde on Aug. 11, 2025.
(Angelo Barbosa/Facebook) -
Flooding damage on the island of São Vicente, Cape Verde on Aug. 11, 2025.
(Angelo Barbosa/Facebook) -
Flooding damage on the island of São Vicente, Cape Verde on Aug. 11, 2025.
(Angelo Barbosa/Facebook) -
Flooding damage on the island of São Vicente, Cape Verde on Aug. 11, 2025.
(Angelo Barbosa/Facebook) -
Flooding damage on the island of São Vicente, Cape Verde on Aug. 11, 2025.
(Angelo Barbosa/Facebook) -
Flooding damage on the island of São Vicente, Cape Verde on Aug. 11, 2025.
(Angelo Barbosa/Facebook) -
Flooding damage on the island of São Vicente, Cape Verde on Aug. 11, 2025.
(Angelo Barbosa/Facebook)
Local officials said at least seven people, including children, were killed.
“The Ministry of Education expresses its deepest sorrow for the tragic loss of seven lives, including four children, on the island of São Vincent,” the Ministry of Education said in a translated Facebook post. The Ministry went on to say “in this time of mourning and dismay, the pain of the bereaved families is the pain of the entire nation.”
Government officials said they declared two days of national mourning due to the loss of human lives and significant material damage caused by the passage of the system.
The Atlantic hurricane season runs from June 1 to Nov. 30.
