The National Hurricane Center (NHC) has announced that as of 1:45pm AST on Wednesday, Tropical Cyclone Leslie has been upgraded to a hurricane, the sixth hurricane of the season which lasts from June 1st through November.
The storm is currently 465 miles SSE of Bermuda. It is moving north at two miles per hour. A slow northward to north-northwestward motion, erratic at times, is expected over the next few days. Maximum sustained winds are now 75 mph with higher gusts. A National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) buoy located approximately 140 miles NNW of the center of Leslie has been reporting sustained tropical-storm-force winds for the past three hours. The storm is expected to increase in strength as the day progresses.
Currently there are no hurricane watches or warning in effect, but the NHC has advised "interests in Bermuda" to closely monitor the progress of Leslie.
In terms of storm-related hazards and their possible effects on land, swells generated from Leslie will continue to affect Bermuda, the United States East Coast from Central Florida northward, the Northern Leeward Islands, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands over the next several days. The NHC warns that these swells could cause dangerous and life-threatening surf and rip current conditions.
Additionally, the NHC has posted an advisory regarding Tropical Storm Michael. Michael is currently located 1,125 miles WSW of the Azores. The storm is moving northeast at 7 mph and is expected to continue on this path until it turns toward the northwest on Friday. Maximum sustained winds are moving at 65 mph and the storm is strengthening quickly. While tropical-storm-force winds extend outward up to 60 miles, there are currently no tropical storm watches or warnings in effect.
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