TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — Hurricane Hanbelle was heavily strengthened Friday night and is now in Category 4 where further development is possible, the National Hurricane Center said.
As of 5am on Saturday, the storm was 375 miles northeast of the Northern Leeward Islands, moving west at about 6am. With a maximum sustained wind speed of 145 mph, Humbel sits in the mid-range of Category 4 and could turn into Category 5 over the weekend.
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The NHC predicts the storm will start to speed up on Monday. This begins to turn towards the northwest and later in the day, heading north. The winds of Hurricane Force are 25 miles away from the center, with tropical storms reaching 105 miles.
The hurricane is not expected to land, but it could bring big swells and strong rifts in the Caribbean and parts of the southeastern US
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The NHC is also paying attention to the obstruction that will develop into a tropical storm on Saturday evening and will be reinforced by a hurricane on Monday. The storm, currently known as the potential tropical cyclone 9, is moving northwest at 7am at about 170 miles northwest of Cuba’s eastern edge. East Cuba and the Bahamas are expected to experience significant rainfall in the coming days, with some areas already receiving warnings of tropical storms.
It is expected to continue moving around North Northwest until the weekend, and approach the southeastern US earlier next week. The largest sustained wind is only around 35 mph, but the NHC said it is expected to become a hurricane by late Monday. If it develops into a hurricane, it will be Hurricane Imelda.
The southeast could cause severe flooding in some areas in preparation for potential heavy rain or storm surges early next week. The chances of this storm forming are very high, at 90% over the next 48 hours and the next 7 days.
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