The Cayman Islands could experience downpours of two to four inches of rainfall - possibly up to six inches by midweek - as tropical depression Grace shifts to more of a westerly direction and brings into closer to the local area.
The system was previously tracking west-north-west.
The Cayman Islands National Weather Service(CINWS) in a Monday morning update centred the storm about 647 miles east-southeast of Cayman Brac with maximum sustained winds of 35 mph and moving towards the west at 15 mph.
On the current forecast track, the center of Grace is expected to pass about 15 miles NE of Cayman Brac around midnight tomorrow into early Wednesday morning.
Currently a tropical depression, Grace is forecast to strengthen to a tropical storm as it moves north of Jamaica by Tuesday afternoon.
The system is tracking through the central Caribbean, where it will bring heavy rainfall and gusty winds early this week, including to earthquake-ravaged Haiti.
This could trigger flash flooding and mudslides, especially in the mountainous terrain of those countries.
A tropical storm watch is in effect for Hispaniola, including Haiti, which is in the midst of a recovery effort from Saturday's major earthquake. Tropical storm conditions are possible there throughout today.
Jamaica is also now under a tropical storm watch for the possibility of tropical storm conditions there on Tuesday.
The US National Hurricane Centre(NHC) puts the estimated minimum central pressure down to 1010 millibars, an indication that the system is strengthening.
The NHC projects a general westward or west-northwestward motion over the next few days. On the forecast track, Grace will move over Hispaniola later today, near or over eastern Cuba on Tuesday, and near or
just south of west-central Cuba on Wednesday.
That puts it in close proximity to Cayman between Tuesday and Wednesday.
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