Errol is now in a weakening phase as the system meanders slowly through theTimor Sea on Monday, local time. The storm will lash parts of southernIndonesia with gusty winds and locally heavy rainfall.The strongest winds on land have occurred across Pulau Roti and Pulau Timor,with gusts of 30-50 mph. The islands are located about 350 miles north of thecoast of Western Australia. The strongest winds for the whole system are likelyto remain over water, as the center tracks just south of the islands during thenext 24 hours.
Tropical Cyclone Errol formed off the northern coast of Western AustraliaFriday and gained strength throughout the day Saturday and early Sunday. Thestorm began to weaken on Sunday night as it encountered some wind shear anddrifted over waters previously churned up by the storm.
Despite weakening, the storm will still bring moderate to heavy rain to Kupang,a city of more than 300,000 people in southern Indonesia. A storm total of 2-4inches of rain can be expected through Monday night.
Due to the cyclone's compact size, the northern coast of Western Australia willhave little impact from the system. The outer periphery of the storm willproduce cloud cover and an isolated thunderstorm or two in northeastern partsof Western Australia.
The cyclone is then expected to dissipate over the Open Indian Ocean south ofJava early next week.
Story by Accuweather.com Meteorologist Eric Wanenchak
