Lee strengthens into a hurricane as middle of hurricane season approaches
The more active part of the hurricane season is mid-August through mid-October, with Sept. 10 as the peak.
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It’s the first week of September, which is just about halfway through the Atlantic Hurricane Season.
The updated forecast that came out in August called for 14-21 named storms, with 6-11 of them becoming hurricanes. The region had 12 named storms already, with four hurricanes thus far. One of them is brand new and its name is Lee.
The more active part of the season is mid-August through mid-October, with Sept. 10 as the peak. This is shown climatologically on the graph, with the peak pretty much where we are now, with tapering numbers the further we get into the fall months.
Hurricane Lee will be watched very closely for a few reasons. This storm is forecasted to become a major hurricane within the next 48 hours and it’s possible this storm could bring impacts to the East Coast, as well as the tri-state area. The storm is currently more than 1,100 miles away from land.
Sea surface temperatures are at their warmest and if the right atmospheric conditions are in place, then more storms develop, more strengthen and more can sustain themselves farther north in latitude. The area that Lee will move into currently has water temperatures of 84-90 degrees.
On its current forecasted path, the storm will bring impacts to the Northern Leeward Islands as soon as this weekend. Large swells, life-threatening surf and rip currents are expected there. It is those same swells that will make it to the East Coast next week.
The tri-state area has certainly seen its fair share of rough surf and rip currents with the recent batch of storms. Hurricane Lee will only bring more.
Stay with News 12 for the very latest as we track Hurricane Lee through next week.
