In this NOAA image taken by the GOES satellite, Hurricane Lee crosses the Atlantic Ocean as it moves west on Sept. 8, 2023. NOAA via Getty Images
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After days of churning in the Caribbean, where Hurricane Lee reached Category 5 status with maximum sustained winds of 165 miles per hour (mph), the storm is headed toward the Atlantic Coast of New England and Canada.
According to the National Hurricane Center, the “large and dangerous” Category 1 storm is projected to make landfall this weekend.
“It’s a batten-down-the-hatches kind of day,” said Kim Gillies, owner of Maine’s Boothbay Harbor Marina, as The Associated Press reported.
Emergency management agencies and the U.S. Coast Guard warned communities in New England to prepare for the storm, as residents removed boats from the water.
Nova Scotia and New Brunswick were under a hurricane watch, while a tropical storm warning was in effect for Bermuda and Massachusetts — including Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket — north to the border of the U.S. and Canada, the National Hurricane Center said.
“Today is the last day to prepare,” meteorologist Stephanie Abrams with The Weather Channel said on CBS Mornings, as reported by CBS News. “Conditions go downhill tonight, and tomorrow, Lee will be battering parts of New England. The strongest winds are expected to be along the coast.”
The National Hurricane Center predicted the southern portion of New England would start seeing tropical storm conditions, including flooding along the coast, this afternoon. Lee was expected to make landfall in Canada on Saturday.
Most of Maine is currently under a tropical storm warning, Portland, Maine’s WMTW News reported. The storm currently has maximum sustained winds of 80 mph, the hurricane center said.
“The winds will increase through the day today, and tomorrow gusting as high as 75 mph,” Abrams said, as reported by CBS News. “Sunday, they’re going to start to taper off from the south to the north.”
More than three million people were under warnings and watches, Abrams said.
New England is still dealing with the aftermath of stormy weather that brought heavy rain, flooding and tornados, The Associated Press reported.
Tide and storm surge from Hurricane Lee are expected to cause more flooding along the New England Coast, reported NBC News. Forecasters said Cape Cod, Boston Harbor, Long Island Sound and other coastal areas were expected to get one to three feet of flooding, with one to two feet in parts of New York.
So far there have been five hurricanes and 14 named storms in 2023. Last month the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) said atmospheric and ocean conditions like record warm temperatures were expected to contribute to an “above normal” hurricane season.
“NOAA forecasters have increased the likelihood of an above-normal Atlantic hurricane season to 60% (increased from the outlook issued in May, which predicted a 30% chance),” the agency said in a press release issued last month.
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