Hurricane Lee has weakened into a Category 3 hurricane and is headed for Bermuda—where authorities issued a tropical storm watch for the island—and will continue to weaken and make its way west and northwest of Bermuda to the U.S. East Coast, threatening heavy rain and flash flooding in the area.
Hurricane Lee has weakened to a Category 3 hurricane, but continues to grow in size. (Photo by NOAA ... [+]
Lee is about 555 miles south of Bermuda with maximum sustained winds of up to 115 mph, as well as hurricane-force winds and tropical storm-force winds extending 90 mph and 205 mph, respectively from its center, the National Hurricane Center said this morning.
Scientists say Lee could bring high surf impacts, strong winds and heavy rainfall to Bermuda by Thursday; the island is currently under tropical storm watch.
The Category 3 hurricane is expected to turn west and northwest of Bermuda in the next day or two, bringing life-threatening rip currents, or fast-moving water, to parts of the Bahamas, Hispaniola, the northern Leeward Islands, Puerto Rico, Turks and Caicos and most of the U.S. East Coast.
The hurricane is also predicted to cause swell waves—low-frequency waves that can travel thousands of miles—that could bring life-threatening surf and rip current conditions in the Bahamas, the British Virgin Islands, Hispaniola, the Lesser Antilles, Puerto Rico, Turks and Caicos and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Though Lee will continuously weaken, its largeness (how far hurricane-force and tropical storm-force winds stretch) still poses threat to areas in its path, as it could also bring dangerous rip currents to parts of the U.S. southeast.
Scientists still say, though, that it is too soon to know the full impact the hurricane could have on the U.S. northeast and Atlantic Canada.
Hurricane Lee rapidly intensified last Thursday into a Category 5 hurricane within just 24 hours. Forecasters suggest this rapid intensification is a result of climate change, as warming oceans fuel the development of tropical cyclones. Though Lee weakened to a Category 4 hurricane by Friday, it still poses a threat to some islands and parts of the U.S. East Coast—some of which, such as Massachusetts and Pennsylvania—experienced flash flooding over the past few days.
Hurricane Lee Now Category 5 After Rapidly Intensifying Over 24 Hours (Forbes)
Here’s What Hurricane ‘Rapid Intensification’—Like With Lee And Idalia—Means (Forbes)