Tropical Storm Debby Bearing Down on the Caribbean

Tropical Storm Debby marched over the Atlantic toward land early today, with residents of many of the tiny northeastern Caribbean islands in its likely path bracing for high winds and rain.

The governments of France, Antigua, the United States and the Netherlands Antilles issued alerts for islands ranging from tiny Dominica, with about 75,000 people, to Puerto Rico with 3.8 million, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said.

Anticipating the storm’s westward passage during the week, warnings were also issued late Monday for parts of the Dominican Republic and Haiti.

Early today the storm was nearing Antigua in the Leeward Islands. It continued just below hurricane strength, with maximum sustained winds of 70 mph, and it was moving west northwest about 20 mph. Forecasters said Debby would become a hurricane later today.

Across the northeastern Caribbean region, which has suffered the impact of several big storms in recent years, people prepared for the potential onslaught, protecting their homes by boarding windows, buying emergency supplies such as batteries and filling gas tanks.

Cruise ships scheduled to dock today and Wednesday at Havensight in Charlotte Amalie, a St. Thomas port, revised their itineraries because of the approaching storm.