A report from the National Hurricane Center says that in the Caribbean Sea a tropical wave located at its center is producing an area of disorganized rains and thunderstorms.

Environmental conditions appear conducive to development, and a tropical depression is likely to form by the end of the week as the system slowly moves to the west of the Caribbean Sea.

The disturbance is then expected to snake over the western Caribbean Sea over the weekend and begin moving slowly, generally to the northwest, early next week.

Official data reports that in the current cyclone season, which ends on November 30, 18 tropical cyclones have been formed, all of them with storm names.

Eleven of the storms became hurricanes, four of which intensified into major hurricanes. In all, 10 systems have made landfall this season bringing damage to the countries hit by them.

mh/arm/mem/al