Topline
Tropical Storm Erin strengthened into a hurricane Friday morning, the National Hurricane Center said in an advisory, with storm warnings and watches in effect for the Caribbean as it moves toward the Leeward Islands east of Puerto Rico.
Erin became a Category 1 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 75 mph, the center said at 11 a.m. EDT.
A tropical storm watch is in effect for Anguilla and Barbuda, Sint Maarten, St. Martin and St. Barthelemy and Saba and St. Eustatius in the Caribbean.
The center of the storm, which is forecast to strengthen over the next two to three days, is expected to move near or just north of the northern Leeward Islands over the weekend with hurricane-force winds extend outward up to 25 miles and tropical-storm-force winds extending outward up to 115 miles.
The U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico are advised to monitor the storm’s progress, but the NHC is not yet warning of impacts to the contiguous United States.
The Leeward Islands, Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico are expected to see heavy rainfall, up to 6 inches in some places, and life-threatening surf and rip current conditions.
Erin is the fifth named storm of the 2025 season but the first to strengthen into a hurricane.
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Erin is the first storm of 2025 to develop into a hurricane, which happens when sustained winds reach 74 to 95 mph. The Atlantic storm season usually peaks in August, September and October, and the National Weather Service predicted a slightly above-normal season for this year thanks to warm ocean temperatures, estimating there will ultimately be between 13 and 19 named storms this year, with six to 10 developing into hurricanes. So far, systems named Andrea, Barry, Chantal and Dexter have been strong enough to be classified as tropical storms. Tropical Storm Barry caused flooding in southeastern Mexico and its remnants played a role in devastating floods that hit Central Texas in July, killing more than 130 people. Chantal led to severe flooding in North Carolina, causing dams to fail and culverts to crumble. Two deaths in North Carolina were blamed on the flooding. Andrea and Dexter did not make landfall.
The first hurricane of the super-active 2024 season, which saw 18 named storms, formed unusually early. Hurricane Beryl formed on June 28 and became the earliest Category 5 Atlantic hurricane on record before making landfall in Carriacou on July 1. There were 11 hurricanes in 2024, five of which became Category 3 or stronger. Hurricanes Milton and Helene hit Florida in a span of two weeks before going on to devastate parts of the southeastern United States. More than 200 people died, and North Carolina took the brunt of flooding that the state’s governor said wiped communities “off the map.”