The Great Smoky Mountain Journal

Staff, Wire Reports

Posted: Sunday, January 21, 2018 03:55 PM

Hurricane Lee Becomes Fifth Major Atlantic Hurricane of 2017 Season

Hurricane Lee is now a Category 3 storm, making it the fifth major Atlantic hurricane of the 2017 season. Lee is not expected to affect land.

The National Hurricane Center said Wednesday morning (Sept. 27) that Lee's winds had increased to 115 miles per hour with higher gusts. The storm is located about 485 miles east-southeast of Bermuda and is expected to continue moving on a northwest path through the Atlantic Ocean over coming days.

Trump promises to visit, aid Puerto Rico
Trump promises to visit, aid Puerto Rico
Six days after Maria struck the island, conditions in Puerto Rico remain dire.

Lee reaches major hurricane status as forecasters continue to track the progress of Hurricane Maria, which tore through the Caribbean and Puerto Rico last week before moving north alongside the U.S. East Coast. Maria is now located about 165 miles east of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina. The storm is expected to start moving away from the North Carolina coast Wednesday afternoon and take a northeast turn farther into the Atlantic Ocean.

Lee is moving northwest at 7 mph, a motion that forecasters expect to continue Wednesday. The storm is expected to weaken some as its path turns to the north Thursday and accelerates northeast by Friday, the National Hurricane Center said.

This year's major hurricanes (Category 3 or higher) include:

Harvey, which hit the Texas coast Aug. 26.
Irma, which hit the Caribbean and then the Florida Keys and southwest Florida Sept. 10.
Jose, which peaked as a category 4 on Sept. 9 before moving away from the Caribbean and back out into the Atlantic Ocean.
Maria, which tore through the Caribbean before hitting Puerto Rico as a Category 4 storm Sept. 20.
Lee, which formed into a hurricane Sept. 24.