The Meteorological Service of Jamaica says Tropical Storm Fred could induce a trough across Jamaica as it moves north of Cuba Thursday through to Friday.

According to the Met Service, at 4:00 am, the centre of Tropical Storm Fred was located near latitude 18.0 degrees north, longitude 68.2 degrees west. It said Fred is moving toward the west-northwest near 26 km/h, and a general west-northwestward motion is expected to begin later Wednesday and continue for the next few days.

On the forecast track, the centre of Fred is expected to be near or over Hispaniola later Wednesday, move near the Turks and Caicos Islands and the southeastern Bahamas on Thursday, and move north of the northern coast of central Cuba on Friday.

The service said satellite imagery indicates that the system is currently producing a large area of showers and thunderstorms across the eastern Caribbean Sea.

The forecast is for periods of showers and thunderstorms to start affecting sections of central and eastern parishes Thursday night through to Friday morning, before extending to the remainder of the island.

Storm Fred is currently not a threat to Jamaica, but the Met Service will continue to monitor the progress of this system.