Lee is now a major hurricane, expected to rapidly intensify to an ‘extremely dangerous’ storm

NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) - Hurricane Lee is rapidly intensifying and has now become a major hurricane. In the latest 4 pm National Hurricane Center (NHC) advisory, Lee has been upgraded to Category 4 with winds of 130 MPH.

In just 24 hours, Lee has rapidly developed from a Tropical Storm to a major Category 4. It is expected to continue rapid intensification to what the NHC is calling an “extremely dangerous” hurricane. Lee is forecast to become a Category 5 hurricane by Friday with sustained winds of 165 mph.

Those in the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico will want to monitor Lee’s developments as it could make a close pass to the north.

A trough dipping down through the eastern US should help stir Lee away from the eastern seaboard for now. Bermuda will also want to monitor Lee’s path since its northerly trajectory could lead to high impacts by the end of next week.