Miami, Sept. 16 (EFE) – Post-tropical cyclone Lee made landfall Saturday on Long Island, west of Nova Scotia (Canada), with maximum sustained winds of 110 km/h (70 mph), reported the United States National Hurricane Center (NHC).
In a special bulletin issued at 4 pm US Eastern Time, the center said Lee’s eye was located 50 miles (80 km) east of the city of Eastport, Maine (USA), and 135 miles (215 km) west of Halifax, Nova Scotia.
The storm is bringing high winds, rain, and coastal flooding to parts of Maine and the Canadian Atlantic.
Lee, now very close to a Category 1 hurricane, is expected to turn northeast and cross Atlantic Canada between Saturday night and Sunday.
Category 1 hurricanes have winds between 119 and 153 kilometers per hour (between 74 and 95 mi/h), according to the Saffir-Simpson wind intensity scale.
A hurricane warning is in effect Saturday afternoon for New Brunswick from the U.S.-Canada border to Point Lepreau, including Grand Manan Island, and for Nova Scotia from Digby to Ecum Secum.
This system is forecast to weaken as it crosses Atlantic Canada.
Along its path, Lee has reached Category 5, the highest on the Saffir-Simpson intensity scale.
It became a hurricane in the center of the Atlantic on Sept. 6, moving toward the Lesser Antilles and at one point approaching the Bermuda Islands, its wind intensity has waxed and waned since then.
Tropical Storm Margot continues to weaken in open Atlantic waters as it loops west of the Azores.
At 3:00 pm GMT, the center of Margot was located 1,120 km (695 miles) west-southwest of the Azores with maximum sustained winds of 50 mph (85 km/h).
Margot is expected to continue to make a clockwise “slow loop” over the next day or two. A faster movement from northeast to east is forecast early next week, with a gradual “weakening,” the observatory said.
No coastal watches or advisories are in effect for this system.
The NHC is also monitoring Tropical Depression 15, which is forecast to become a hurricane on Monday.
Its center was located 1,035 miles (1,670 km) east-northeast of the Lesser Antilles with maximum sustained winds of 35 mph (55 km/h). At this time, no coastal watches or advisories are in effect for this tropical depression.
In an update released on August 10, the National Administration of Oceans and Atmosphere (NOAA) predicted an “above-normal” Atlantic hurricane season, with the formation of between 14 and 21 tropical storms, of which between 6 and 11 would be hurricanes. EFE
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