Overview

• Hurricane Humberto is a major hurricane near 140 mph and Tropical Storm Imelda is near 60 mph, with the storms roughly 650 miles apart.
• The proximity brings the possibility of a Fujiwhara interaction, in which nearby cyclones can orbit a common center and alter each other’s motion and strength.
• Forecasters note potential outcomes ranging from subtle timing and track shifts to one storm absorbing the other, with a full merger considered rare.
• Heavy rain is already showing up from the Carolinas to Florida, and any interaction could further complicate impacts and timing along the Southeast and Eastern Seaboard.
• Imelda could strengthen to a hurricane, and meteorologists are closely monitoring for signs of interaction, citing a 1995 case when Hurricane Iris absorbed Humberto.