Hurricane Lee is forecasted to rapidly intensify and approach Category 5 strength as it churns in the Atlantic Ocean on its path to the northeast Caribbean.
The storm’s winds reached up to to 80 mph by Thursday morning and it is predicted to rapidly intensify later in the day, according to the National Hurricane Center (NHC).
As of 5 a.m. Thursday, the storm was located in the Atlantic Ocean around 965 miles east of the northern Leeward Islands, the NHC said. This is a group of islands where the northeast Caribbean Sea meets the Atlantic Ocean that includes the U.S. Virgin Islands in the north and that stretches down from near Cuba to Venezuela.
By early Friday, Lee is forecasted to become an “extremely dangerous” major hurricane, according to the NHC, which considers a hurricane “major” when the sustained winds within the storm reach 111 mph or higher, matching a Category 3 or higher storm.
“The environment around the cyclone looks ideal for rapid intensification,” the Miami-based NHC said.
Winds are expected to to reach 155 mph within the next 48 hours, the NHC said. It considers winds of 157 mph or higher to be a Category 5 storm.
Jason Dunion, director of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Hurricane Field Program, told CNN that Lee “definitely has the potential to be a Category 5 storm.”
If it does reach Category 5 status, Lee would become the first Category 5 storm of the Atlantic season.
The exact path of the storm remains unclear, and meteorologists said it was too soon to provide details on potential rainfall and wind gusts.
While the storm is not yet expected to make landfall, forecasters are predicting potential tropical storm conditions north of the northern Leeward Islands, the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico over the weekend into early next week. Forecasters advised people in these areas to monitor updates to Lee’s forecast.
Lee is also expected to generate large ocean swells near the Lesser Antilles — a group of islands in the Caribbean Sea — as well in the British and U.S. Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, Hispaniola, the Bahamas and Bermuda over the weekend. The Hurricane Center said these swells are likely to cause life-threatening surf and rip current conditions.
Tropical-storm force winds are also expected to hit the Dominican Republic, Haiti and Puerto Rico starting Friday.
Lee is the 12th named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season, which stretches from June 1 to Nov. 30.
Last month, NOAA warned of an “above-normal” level of Atlantic hurricane activities due to certain ocean and atmospheric conditions, including the record-warm sea surface temperatures. The agency forecast between 14 and 21 named storms, six to 11 hurricanes and two to five major hurricanes.