Ernesto moves toward eastern Caribbean Sea

Watches and warnings were up for several Caribbean nations Friday as Tropical Storm Ernesto churned toward the sea, the National Hurricane Center in Miami said. Ernesto, with maximum sustained winds of 45 mph, was about 30 miles southeast of St. Lucia and about 35 miles east-northeast of St. Vincent, traveling west at 24 mph, the center said in its 5 a.m. EDT advisory. Tropical storm warnings were in effect for Dominica, St. Lucia, Martinique and Guadeloupe. A tropical storm watch was in effect for Grenada and its dependencies. Barbados officials canceled a tropical storm warning for Barbados, St. Vincent and the Grenadines. Ernesto was expected to stay on its westerly path for the next few days with a gradual decrease in forward speed, the center said. On its projected track, Ernesto's center will move into the eastern Caribbean Sea later Friday morning. Tropical storm conditions were expected within the warning areas through midday Friday. Between 2-3 inches of rain could fall across the Windward Islands through the day Friday, with isolated amounts of up to 5 inches of rain. Large waves generated by Ernesto will affect the tropical storm warning area for the next couple of days, the center said.