large low markedly gained in organization, and the National Hurricane Center (NHC) noted it was close to becoming a tropical depression. Later that day, however, the main circulation became increasingly elongated; its westernmost component soon detached to form a separate tropical wave. This new disturbance featured widely scattered convection and rainbands, which briefly affected the Lesser Antilles. The next day, a new area of deep convection with a dominant center formed as the circulation became better defined. It passed through the Leeward Islands with some improvement in its structure, and the surface winds rose to near tropical storm force. A reconnaissance flight into the system revealed the circulation center had become well defined near the deep convection. The system was upgraded to tropical storm status and given the name Emily at 0000 UTC on August 2, when it was located to the south of Dominica. During the initial stages of its existence, the storm accelerated toward the west-northwest in response to the strong high pressure to its north. With a relatively dry environment along its projected path, Emily was expected to strengthen only gradually until its predicted passage through the Greater Antilles. For several hours into August 2, the cyclone fluctuated little in intensity and organization as it developed banding features. Emily's appearance later improved on satellite images, and it developed a ragged central dense overcast; the NHC estimated that the storm had reached its peak sustained winds of 50 mph (80 km/h) by 0000 UTC on August 3. Nevertheless, reconnaissance revealed that its circulation remained poorly organized, and at the time, several forecast models even supported dissipation prior to landfall in Hispaniola. An increase in upper wind shear removed the deepest convection from the circulation center, and it would remain so for the rest of the storm's duration. On August 4, the cloud pattern and convective banding became better organized near the center as the upper outflow over the cyclone expanded. Emily proceeded to track just south of the Dominican Republic, where its weak circulation became increasingly disrupted due to the adjacent high terrain and increasing vertical wind shear. The cyclone accelerated over Hispaniola and degenerated into an open trough around 2100 UTC that day. The remnant trough proceeded northwestward into the Bahamas, where the NHC assessed a high chance of redevelopment based on relenting upper wind shear. Over the next couple of days, it moved over the Bahamas