MIAMI • A tropical depression gained power south of Cuba to become Tropical Storm Zeta yesterday as it travelled north into the Gulf of Mexico, where it's poised to become the record 11th storm to hit the US in a single year.
The storm had winds of 65 kilometres per hour as it moved northwest about 400km south of Cuba's western tip, the US National Hurricane Centre said.
A turn to the north-west and increase in forward speed are expected by today, it said.
If it stays on track, it could brush the edge of the offshore oil and natural gas fields near Louisiana that have seen numerous shut-ins this season. Mr Eric Blake, a senior hurricane specialist at the centre, said Zeta could become a hurricane over the south-west Gulf of Mexico tomorrow.
So several storms have formed this year that the centre ran out of official names and has started using Greek letters to designate systems. The United States has been hard hit by hurricanes Isaias, Laura, Hanna, Sally and Deltaall striking the coastline and causing billions of dollars in damage.
While some storms, including Isaias and Fay, hit the East Coast, most struck the Gulf Coast between Texas and Florida. They included hurricanes Laura and Delta, which came ashore near Cameron, Louisiana, sending residents a double dose of misery.
Zeta will probably also strike Louisiana, making it the fifth storm to do so this year.
A typical Atlantic hurricane season only spins up 12 storms, and only 2005 produced more systems than this year, with 28.
The six-month season theoretically ends on Nov 30 but a number of storms formed before the season's official start date of June 1 this year, and some meteorologists think they could keep coming into December.
BLOOMBERG