Hurricanes Jose and Maria have storm watchers on high alert as both make their way towards the US. Maria is looking especially threatening as it follows a path similar to the deadly one of Hurricane Irma less than two weeks ago.
Jose, which is a category one hurricane, is being closely watched along the Mid-Atlantic up to New England as heavy rain and tropical storm winds are expected to land as soon as Tuesday.
Although the eye of the storm will stay clear of the mainland, there is about a 30 percent chance of tropical-storm-force winds along the Delaware-Maryland-Virginia coast as early as Monday afternoon or evening and more like a 40 to 50 percent chance of tropical-storm-force winds reaching the coast from New Jersey up through New York, Boston and Cape Cod as early as Monday evening or Tuesday morning, according to the National Hurricane Center.
Meanwhile, Hurricane Maria, currently at 75 mph winds, officially reached hurricane strength by Sunday evening, with warnings extending from Barbados to Antigua. Maria is expected to reach major hurricane status (category 3 and up) by Wednesday when it hits both Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. On Monday morning alone, Maria’s maximum sustained winds jumped from 90 mph to 110 mph in just three hours, the National Hurricane Center said.
And for the first time in 85 years, Puerto Rico is expected to suffer a direct landfall from a Category 4 hurricane, CNN reports.
We hope everyone is prepared and stays safe during this time.