Tropics heat up in Atlantic basin

Disaster News Network: The much-publicized slow start to the Atlantic Coast hurricane season came to an abrupt end Saturday when within hours both Ana and Bill grew large enough to become the first two named storms of the season.

…Tropic storm watches were posted Saturday night for St. Maarten, Saba and St. Eustatius as Ana moved west. Tropical Storm Bill, on the other hand, is currently predicted to reach hurricane strength by Wednesday afternoon as it approaches the Leeward Islands. Some of the projections suggest Bill could become a significant hurricane reaching at least Category 2 status later in the week. Long-term models suggest Bill will eventually curve north, missing most if not all of the U.S. coast.

Meanwhile, a tropical wave in the Gulf of Mexico west of Florida is expected to bring heavy rains across Louisiana and Mississippi in a few days. The system, if it stays intact, is predicted to drop significant rain in the WV and Kentucky areas hit hard by Spring flooding.

Phil Klotzbach and William Gray, of Colorado State University's Tropical Meteorology Project, said earliers this month hey expect 10 tropical storms and predict at least four will become hurricanes….