Hurricane Lee is expected to strengthen in the coming days, the National Hurricane Center said Sunday.
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association/Screenshot from NPR
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National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association/Screenshot from NPR
Hurricane Lee is expected to strengthen in the coming days, the National Hurricane Center said Sunday.
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association/Screenshot from NPR
Hurricane Lee, a strong Category 3 storm, is expected to move well north of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands in the next few days, the National Hurricane Center said. But the hurricane is gaining strength and could cause dangerous surf conditions across much of the US East Coast starting Sunday.
The hurricane, with maximum sustained winds of nearly 120 miles per hour and higher gusts, is already causing life-threatening rip currents affecting parts of the Lesser Antilles, the British and Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, Hispaniola, the Turks and Caicos Islands, the Bahamas and Bermuda, meteorologists said on Sunday evening.
Dangerous surf conditions have begun to affect parts of the southeastern east coast and are forecast to worsen over the next few days and spread northward along much of the east coast, the center said.
Lee is expected to turn west of Bermuda later this week and could bring wind, rain and high surf to the island, forecasters say. However, it is still too early to determine the exact timing and extent of these effects.
Still, there were no coast guards or warnings about Hurricane Lee at the time.
Lee’s forecast has fluctuated wildly in recent days. With record high water temperatures in the Atlantic, it quickly reached Category 5 strength before being downgraded early Saturday. The hurricane increased in wind speed on Sunday and is expected to strengthen further with some fluctuations on Monday and Tuesday, the center said.
A Category 3 storm, considered a major hurricane, can cause devastating damage to well-built frame homes, knocking down trees and disrupting power and water supplies for several days.
“It is still too early to know what extent of impact Lee could have on the East Coast and Atlantic Canada late next week, particularly as the hurricane is expected to weaken significantly over the southwest Atlantic,” the center said in a report 5:00 p.m. ET advisory on Sunday.