SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — Two tropical storms advanced across the Caribbean on Saturday night as potentially historic threats to the U.S. Gulf Coast, one dumping rain on Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands while the other was pushing through the gap between Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula and Cuba.
Tropical Storms Laura and Marco were both projected to approach Louisiana at or close to hurricane force just two days apart next week. A hurricane watch was issued for the New Orleans metro area, which was pummeled by Hurricane Katrina in August 2005.
Two hurricanes have never appeared in the Gulf of Mexico at the same time, according to records going back to at least 1900, said Colorado State University hurricane researcher Phil Klotzbach. The last time two tropical storms were in the Gulf together was in 1959, he said.
The last time two storms made landfall in the United States within 24 hours of each other was in 1933, Klotzbach said.
The projected tracks from the U.S. National Hurricane Center on Saturday afternoon pointed to both storms being together in the Gulf on Monday, with Marco hitting Louisiana and Laura making landfall in the same general area Wednesday.
But large uncertainties remain for that time span, and forecasts have varied greatly so far for the two storms.
Laura flung rain across Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands on Saturday and was expected to drench the Dominican Republic, Haiti and parts of Cuba through Sunday on its westward course.
The storm was centered about 85 miles east-southeast of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, on Saturday night, with maximum sustained winds of 50 mph. It was moving west at 18 mph.
Marco, meanwhile, was strengthening while centered about 75 miles west-northwest of Cuba’s western tip, headed to the north-northwest at 13 mph. It had maximum sustained winds of 65 mph and was expected to become a hurricane late Saturday.