**NHC Monitors Tropical Storm Kirk and Other Atlantic Disturbances**

As Tropical Storm Kirk remains active in the Atlantic Ocean, the National Hurricane Center (NHC) is on high alert for its potential intensification. Currently situated 935 miles west of the Cabo Verde Islands, Kirk has maintained maximum sustained winds of 60 mph and a minimum central pressure of 998 mb. The storm is advancing west-northwest at a speed of 14 mph.

Forecasters expect Kirk to gain considerable strength throughout Tuesday, with the storm potentially reaching hurricane status by Tuesday night. By Thursday, predictions indicate that Kirk could become a major hurricane. While the storm continues its west-northwest path, the NHC projects a gradual turn toward the northwest starting on Wednesday. Fortunately, no land impact is expected on its current trajectory, and no land hazards are reported at this time.

Beyond Kirk, the NHC is keeping an eye on several other weather disturbances in the Atlantic and Caribbean regions following the destructive Hurricane Helene. One of these is Invest 91-L, which is located near the coast of Africa, east of the Atlantic. This broad area of low pressure, a few hundred miles south of the Cabo Verde Islands, is generating showers and thunderstorms with increasing organization. Favorable environmental conditions suggest a high probability—80% within the next 48 hours and 90% over the next seven days—that this system will evolve into a tropical depression as it progresses westward.

Additionally, an area of low pressure in the Caribbean Sea is being closely watched. This system could develop into a depression before or as it moves into the Gulf of Mexico. Communities along the United States Gulf Coast, including Florida, are advised to stay vigilant and monitor updates about this particular disturbance.

In related developments, the remnants of what was once Tropical Storm Joyce have dissipated over the central Atlantic Ocean, posing no current threat to land. The NHC has ceased issuing advisories on Joyce.

Stay updated with WESH 2 online and on-air for the latest on Central Florida weather forecasts, and download the WESH 2 News app for real-time weather alerts from the First Warning Weather team, including Chief Meteorologist Tony Mainolfi and his colleagues Eric Burris, Kellianne Klass, Marquise Meda, and Cam Tran.