Large swells batter Caribbean as Hurricane Lee churns waters nearby

Large swells battered the north-east Caribbean on Saturday as Hurricane Lee churned nearby through open waters as a category 3 storm.

The storm, which is not forecast to make landfall, was located about 350 miles (565km) east and north-east of the northern Leeward Islands. It had winds of up to 115mph (185kph) and was moving west and north-west at 12mph (19kph).

Earlier this week, Lee grew from a category 1 storm to a category 5 storm in just one day amid warm waters and limited wind shear. Category 5 is the highest classification for hurricanes.

“This was one of the fastest rates of strengthening in the Atlantic Basin on record,” AccuWeather said in a statement.

Lee is expected to strengthen again on Sunday and Monday, according to the National Hurricane Center (NHC).

The storm was forecast to pass well north of the north-east Caribbean in a big relief to people from the British Virgin Islands to Puerto Rico, which are still recovering from hurricanes Irma and Maria, which hit in September 2017.

Tropical storm conditions were not expected for any Caribbean island, but breaking waves of up to 15ft (5 meters) were forecast for Puerto Rico and nearby territories, with authorities warning people to stay out of the water.

“We are concerned about people and boaters who may underestimate the impacts of this passing storm,” said Capt José Díaz of the Coast Guard sector in San Juan, Puerto Rico. “The increase in projected sea states of 10 to 15 feet severely reduces our ability to respond to a maritime distress with the full use of our resources.”

The NHC said the seas near the center of the hurricane were expected to peak at 45ft (14 meters).

It noted that dangerous surf and rip currents were expected to hit most of the US east coast starting on Sunday but that the hurricane’s impact beyond that is still unclear.

“It is way too soon to know what level of impacts, if any, Lee might have along the US east coast, Atlantic Canada, or Bermuda late next week,” the NHC said.

Meanwhile, officials in the French Caribbean island of Guadeloupe warned of up to 3in (8mm) of rain in a span of three hours or less for some areas, while officials in the French territories of St Barts and St Martin said flooding in some coastal areas was possible.

Lee is expected to remain a powerful hurricane into next week and is forecast to take a northward turn by Wednesday. However, its path after that remains unclear.

“Right now, the area in the United States that really needs to pay attention includes locations from the upper part of the mid-Atlantic coast to New England,” the AccuWeather meteorologist Bernie Rayno said.

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

Tropical Storm Margot became the 13th named storm after forming on Thursday evening. It was located about 970 miles (1,560km) west and north-west of the Cabo Verde Islands. It had winds of up to 45mph (75kph) and was forecast to strengthen into a hurricane early next week. It was moving west and north-west at 12mph (19kph) and is expected to remain over open water.

The National Ocean and Atmospheric Administration in August forecasted between 14 and 21 named storms this season. Six to 11 of them are expected to become hurricanes, and of those, two to five might develop into major hurricanes.

In the Pacific, Hurricane Jova spun through open waters far from Mexico’s south-west coast and posed no threat to land.

It was located about 995 miles (1,600km) west of the southern tip of Baja California and was moving west and north-west at 10mph (17kph) with winds up to 65mph (100kph).