"We are already trying to protect what seems to be most vulnerable, namely in places where the sea waves are expected to be very high", said the mayor of Vila Nova do Corvo to Lusa news agency.

According to José Manuel Silva (PS), due to the forecast of strong waves, all fishing and sports boats were removed from the port and placed in safe areas, as well as the containers that were on the quay.

The mayor of the only municipality on the smallest island in the Azores also said that some objects that could be blown away by the wind had been collected and that the moorings of street recycling bins in more vulnerable areas had been reinforced.

"We are taking the necessary precautions at a time like this and taking the forecasts into account", stressed José Manuel Silva, admitting that the road around the airport could be closed this afternoon.

The mayor of Corvo stressed that the island's approximately 400 inhabitants are aware of the precautions that must be taken in these circumstances and that they are following the instructions of the Civil Protection.

"Obviously people are worried, but they hope that nothing major will happen", added the mayor to Lusa, indicating that the weather was "very calm" on the island this morning.

José Manuel Silva also explained that the Municipal Emergency Plan has not yet been activated, but from this afternoon there will be "a preventive team with some members of the Municipal Civil Protection Commission to assist in any situation that may arise".

"We are on alert, the firefighters will be there too. Everything is prepared for whatever is necessary. And let's hope that the cyclone passes without major effects", he said.

Tropical Cyclone Kirk will pass north of the Azores archipelago as a tropical storm and will cause "worsening weather conditions on all the islands", the Portuguese Institute of the Sea and Atmosphere (IPMA) warned today.

According to a statement from the IPMA Azores delegation, at 9:00 local time today (10:00 in Lisbon), the center of tropical cyclone Kirk (a category 1 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson scale) “was approximately 850 km west of the Azores, on the island of Flores, moving northeast at a speed of 48 km/h [kilometers/hour]”.

In the Western (Flores and Corvo) and Central (Faial, Pico, Terceira, São Jorge and Graciosa) groups, the IPMA predicts “rainfall that is sometimes heavy, possibly accompanied by thunderstorms, and an increase in wind intensity and sea agitation, from late afternoon today”.

“Gusts of up to 115 km/h and waves that could reach a significant height of 11 meters (19 meters maximum height) are forecast in the Western group”.

In the Central group, “gusts of up to 90 km/h and waves that could reach eight meters in significant height (15 meters in maximum height) are expected”.

For the Eastern group (São Miguel and Santa Maria), for Tuesday, the IPMA predicts waves “that could reach six meters in significant height (12 meters in maximum height)”.

Due to the passage of tropical cyclone Kirk through the Azores archipelago, the IPMA issued a red warning for Tuesday for the islands of the Western group due to the waves.

For the islands of the Western, Central and Eastern groups, orange and yellow warnings were also issued, due to rough seas, wind and sometimes heavy rainfall.