Tropical Storm Sam strengthened into a hurricane early Friday and was expected to intensify as it moved west across the Atlantic Ocean, forecasters said.
The storm was more than 1,300 miles east of the eastern Caribbean as of 11 a.m. Eastern time, moving west at 14 miles per hour with maximum sustained winds of 75 m.p.h., according to the National Hurricane Center.
Sam, formed on Thursday in the central Atlantic and strengthen into a hurricane early Friday. Same is the fourth named storm to develop in less than a week and the 18th in a hectic 2021 Atlantic hurricane season.
Tropical Storm Sam strengthened into a hurricane early Friday and was expected to intensify as it moved west across the Atlantic Ocean, forecasters said. However, it was not an immediate threat to land.
The hurricane was more than 1,300 miles east of the eastern Caribbean as of 11 a.m. Eastern time, moving west at 14 miles per hour with maximum sustained winds of 75 m.p.h., according to the National Hurricane Center.
Sam, which formed on Thursday in the central Atlantic, is the fourth named storm to develop in less than a week and the 18th overall in a busy 2021 Atlantic hurricane season.
“It is too early to tell what, if any, impacts could occur in the United States or any other land areas,’’ Dennis Feltgen, a meteorologist at the hurricane center in Miami, said on Friday.
“All we need to do right now is check the latest forecast as we get into next week,’’ Mr. Feltgen. He said people should ensure they have a hurricane plan, including supplies, in place.
“With more than two months to go in the hurricane season, it is certainly possible that the 2021 Atlantic list of names will be exhausted,’’ Mr. Feltgen said.
This year, the height hurricane season — August through November — has led to a run of named storms that formed in quick sequence, bringing stormy weather, flooding, and damaging winds to parts of the United States and the Caribbean.
The links between hurricanes and climate change are becoming more apparent. A warming planet can expect stronger hurricanes over time and a higher incidence of the most powerful storms — though the overall number of storms could drop, because factors like stronger wind shear could keep weaker storms from forming.
