The Atlantic hurricane season is living up to its reputation for unpredictability this year, as two powerful weather systems—Hurricane Humberto and a developing tropical storm likely to be named Imelda—churn over warm waters near the Caribbean and the southeastern United States. With communities from Florida to the Carolinas bracing for heavy rains, strong winds, and potential flooding, meteorologists are working around the clock to track the storms’ paths and warn residents of possible impacts.
Humberto, the eighth named storm of the 2025 hurricane season, formed hundreds of miles east of the Caribbean before strengthening into a major hurricane just north of the islands. According to CBS News, Humberto became a tropical storm on Wednesday night, September 24, and was upgraded to hurricane status early Friday morning, September 26. As of Saturday, September 27, Humberto remained a powerful force over open water, swirling as a major hurricane with forecasts projecting it will move northwest and gain strength over the coming days.
Despite its intensity, forecasters from the National Hurricane Center predict that Humberto is unlikely to make landfall. Instead, it’s expected to hook northward, threading a path between Bermuda and the U.S. East Coast. StormTeam 5 meteorologist Mike Wankum told viewers, “This is going to become a major hurricane. But right now looks like it’s going to thread between Bermuda and the East Coast.” By Tuesday, September 30, Humberto is forecast to be a Category 3 storm, and by Wednesday, October 1, it should weaken slightly to a Category 2 as it continues its journey northward.
Yet, Humberto is not alone in the Atlantic. Just a few hundred miles away, another system is brewing—one that has meteorologists and emergency officials keeping a close eye on its development. This system, expected to become Tropical Storm Imelda, is currently a tropical wave over the Caribbean. Forecast models, as reported by local news outlets and The Weather Channel, suggest that Imelda may move into the Carolinas early next week, bringing with it the threat of flooding rains from Monday, September 29, through Tuesday, September 30.
“We have a very active tropics,” Wankum emphasized, noting that while Imelda has not yet formed into a tropical storm, “there’s a lot of moisture there. There’s some energy as well. And it looks like right now it is headed really for South Carolina.” Heavy rain from what meteorologists call a “predecessor rain event” is already expected to fall across a wide swath of the Carolinas this weekend, even before the system’s official arrival. Some areas could see more than three inches of rain, raising concerns about flash flooding and river rises.
South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster took the unusual step of declaring a state of emergency on Friday, September 26, in advance of the storm’s arrival. “While the storm’s arrival, speed, and intensity remain hard to predict, we do know that it will bring significant wind, heavy rainfall, and flooding across the entire state of South Carolina,” McMaster said in a statement. “We have seen this before. Now is the time to start paying attention to forecasts, updates, and alerts from official sources and begin making preparations.”
While the two systems are not currently interacting directly, their proximity has sparked speculation among meteorologists about the possibility of the Fujiwhara effect—a rare phenomenon where two storms get close enough to either merge or spin around a common center. According to the National Weather Service, this “intense dance” can occur when storms are of similar strength or size. CBS News meteorologist Nikki Nolan explained, “Typically when one system is stronger than the other, the smaller and weaker system will get overrun by the larger, stronger one and completely eliminate it. Similar systems will dance around each other before going their separate ways.”
With Humberto currently the more powerful of the two, Nolan suggested that if any interaction does take place, it’s unlikely to result in a dramatic merger. “Very rarely has a larger system absorbed a smaller one and become larger or stronger, but it is scientifically possible,” she said. For now, the main concern is that the moisture from both systems is funneling into the southeastern United States, increasing the risk of heavy rainfall and flooding.
Forecasts for the Boston area and much of New England, meanwhile, offer a stark contrast to the stormy conditions further south. As reported by local meteorologists, temperatures in Boston soared to 82 degrees Fahrenheit on Friday, September 26, about a dozen degrees above average for this time of year. However, a big dome of high pressure from Canada is expected to move in by midweek, bringing cooler, drier air and pushing Imelda’s moisture well to the south of New England. “Despite the increase in moisture, we won’t get any rain out of either of those systems,” Wankum noted. “A big dome of high pressure will come down from Canada, likely suppressing Imelda well to the south of New England around midweek next week.”
As for the rest of the Atlantic seaboard, the coming days will be a test of preparation and resilience. The National Hurricane Center’s Michael Brennan warned that both Humberto and the developing Imelda system could potentially impact parts of the southeastern U.S., from Florida to North Carolina. Coastal residents are urged to stay informed, heed official warnings, and have emergency plans in place as the situation evolves.
Looking ahead, the interplay between Humberto and Imelda remains a wild card for forecasters. While the odds of a direct Fujiwhara effect are slim, the possibility can’t be entirely ruled out. Nolan explained, “With the two tropical troubles currently north of the Caribbean, these two may interact under the Fujiwhara effect in the days ahead.” If such a collision were to occur, it could slightly alter the expected tracks of both storms, adding another layer of uncertainty to an already complex forecast.
For now, meteorologists and emergency officials alike are urging vigilance. With the Atlantic hurricane season still in full swing, and the memory of past storms fresh in many minds, the message is clear: keep an eye on the forecasts, prepare for the worst, and hope for the best. As the region braces for whatever the next week may bring, the power and unpredictability of nature are once again on full display.
