Storm Lifecycle

On August 9, an area of convection developed just south of Jamaica in association with a trough of low pressure. The system tracked west-northwestward, and by August 10 consisted of a broad surface trough with minimal shower activity. Convection increased on August 11, and by August 12 the interaction between a tropical wave and an upper-level low in the area resulted in a large area of disorganized thunderstorms extending from the western Caribbean Sea into the central Bahamas. Upper-level winds gradually became more beneficial for development, and on August 13 a broad low pressure area formed about 90 miles (145 km) north-northeast of Cancun, Quintana Roo. Late on August 14, a reconnaissance flight into the system reported a small circulation center, but at the time was not well-defined enough to result in the initiation of tropical cyclone advisories. More » However, deep convection was maintained near the increasingly organizing center, and at 0300 UTC on August 15 the National Hurricane Center classified it as Tropical Depression Five about 425 miles (685 km) southeast of Brownsville, Texas. Based on reconnaissance data received from an NOAA plane investigating the depression, it was upgraded to Tropical Storm Erin on August 15. It weakened to a tropical depression as it made landfall near Lamar, Texas, on August 16 and the NHC issued its last advisory on the system shortly thereafter as it moved inland, and the HPC dropped the system as a tropical depression on the afternoon of August 19. Two people were killed when a warehouse collapsed in Texas. In total, 17 people died as a result of Erin. « Hide