Met Service: Rain picks up later today to affect weekend

By Aaron Humes: The National Meteorological Service (Met Service) expects a slight increase in moisture later today.

For the next 24 hours, skies will be sunny with cloudy spells today and cloudy at times tonight. 

Showers and thunderstorms will be isolated with a few more in the north and inland areas before increasing over most areas tonight.

Winds are from the east to northeast at five to 10 knots. Sea state is slight.

Temperatures will reach 89 degrees Fahrenheit along the coast; 94 degrees in inland areas and 80 degrees in the hills. Tonight, expect 80 degrees along the coast, 74 degrees inland and 68 in the hills.

Tides will be low at 11:45 a.m. this morning and 10:23 p.m. tonight, and high at 6:13 p.m. this evening. The Sun sets three minutes before six this evening and rises tomorrow morning at 5:40 a.m.

In the tropical weather outlook for the North Atlantic, Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico: A tropical wave located a few hundred miles south-southeast of the Cape Verde Islands has a medium chance of becoming a tropical depression during the next 48 hours.

At 3:00am Tropical Storm Rene was centered near latitude 19.7N, longitude 38.5W, or about 985 miles west-northwest of the Cabo Verde Islands. Rene was moving to the west-northwest at 10mph with maximum sustained winds of 45mph.

At 3:00 am, Tropical Storm Paulette was centered near latitude 23.1N, longitude 51.7W, or about 810 miles east-northeast of the northern Leeward Islands. Paulette was moving to the west-northwest at 10mph with maximum sustained winds of 65mph.

The extended outlook sees showers and isolated thunderstorms mostly over the south Saturday morning, then in the North and inland Saturday afternoon, spreading to most areas Saturday night. 

Our thanks to forecaster Michelle Smith Augustine from the Belize Weather Bureau in Ladyville.