Hurricane Lee – Live: The storm is rapidly intensifying as it heads toward the Caribbean islands

Meteorologists warned Thursday that Typhoon Lee is shaping up to be a very dangerous typhoon.

“It has the potential to become a powerful Category 5 hurricane, the strongest hurricane this year,” said Jonathan Porter, AccuWeather’s chief meteorologist.

It is expected to develop into a “very dangerous” large hurricane by early Saturday, according to the National Hurricane Center, which noted that the storm was moving over very warm waters and in a humid environment.

Large waves are likely to reach parts of the Lesser Antilles on Friday, according to the weather forecast.

The Lesser Antilles is a long arc of small islands in the Caribbean Sea stretching from the British and US Virgin Islands to Grenada.

Hurricane Lee rapidly strengthened Thursday as it moved toward the Caribbean islands, with “life-threatening” conditions expected to develop in the coming days.

Hurricane Lee is located about 965 miles (1,555 kilometers) east of the northern Leeward Islands, according to the 5 a.m. (ET) report from the National Hurricane Center (NHC) with maximum sustained winds of 80 mph (130 kph).

“Rapid intensification is expected to begin later today, and Lee is expected to become a significant hurricane by early Friday,” the NHC reported.

Current forecasts indicate that Hurricane Lee will not make landfall but will pass north of the British Virgin Islands, which are still recovering from Hurricanes Maria and Irma in September 2017.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said last month that record high ocean temperatures and a delayed El Niño double the chances of a bad Atlantic hurricane season this summer and fall.

With the Atlantic hurricane season much higher than normal so far, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has increased the number of storms expected and how busy the season will be.

Previous expectations were more inclined towards a season close to normal by 40%, but the chance of a normal season has now decreased to 25%. ap

The hot summer of 2023 has been officially confirmed as the “hottest summer on record” in the Northern Hemisphere by the United Nations.

Scientists from the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the European Climate Service (Copernicus) announced on Wednesday that this August was about 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) hotter than in pre-industrial times.

The World Meteorological Organization said the hottest August on record is also the second-hottest month on record, after July.

August marked the end of a brutal Northern Hemisphere summer, as land and ocean temperature records were broken across continents; Severe heat waves and deadly forest fires.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said in a statement: “Days of summer are not just about barking dogs, they also bite.” “The climate collapse has begun.”

Hurricane Lee continues to cycle through open waters as it approaches the Leeward Islands, threatening to bring severe weather.

The hurricane is not yet expected to make landfall on the islands while it is on a projected path that will take it near the northeastern Caribbean Sea, although forecasters said tropical storm conditions are possible on some islands.

The storm is located about 965 miles (1,555 kilometers) from the northern Leeward Islands, according to the latest update from the National Hurricane Center this morning. The winds were gusting to 80 mph (130 kph) and were moving west. -NW at 13 mph (20 kph).

Moody’s Analytics estimated the total insured losses in the private market from Hurricane Adalia, which hit Florida as a Category 3 storm last week, at $3 billion to $5 billion.

The risk modeling firm estimated a best estimate of $3.5 billion in insured losses associated with Idalia winds, storm surges and flooding from heavy rain.

Moreover, Moody’s estimated losses to the National Flood Insurance Program at $500 million – the US government initiative that provides affordable insurance to homeowners.