Hurricane Lee charges across Atlantic on approach to north-east Caribbean

Hurricane Lee whirled through open waters on Thursday as forecasters warned it could become the first Category 5 storm of the Atlantic season.

Lee was not expected to make landfall while on a projected path that will take it near the north-east Caribbean, although forecasters said tropical storm conditions are possible on some islands.

Meteorologists said it is too early to provide details on potential rainfall and wind gusts.

The storm was located some 965 miles (1,555km) from the northern Leeward Islands.

It had winds of up to 80mph (130kph) and was moving west-northwest at 13mph (20kph).

Lee was forecast to develop into an “extremely dangerous” major hurricane by early Friday.

“The environment around the cyclone looks ideal for rapid intensification,” the National Hurricane Centre in Miami said.

Life-threatening surf was expected to hit the Lesser Antilles on Friday and reach the British and US Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, Hispaniola, the Bahamas and Bermuda this weekend, the centre said.

Lee is the 12th named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season, which runs from June 1 to November 30 and peaks in September.

The National Ocean and Atmospheric Administration in August forecast between 14 to 21 named storms this season, with six to 11 of them expected to become hurricanes, and, of those, two to five possibly developing into major hurricanes.

In the Pacific, Hurricane Jova churned through open waters far from Mexico’s south-west coast as a Category 5 storm. It posed no threat to land.

It was located some 535 miles (860km) south-west of the southern tip of Baja California and moving west-northwest at 16mph (26kph) with winds up to 160mph (260kph).

The storm is expected to weaken late on Thursday.