Washington (AFP) – Gaston was upgraded to the third hurricane of the Atlantic season Thursday, although it is expected to revert back to a tropical storm later in the day, the US-based National Hurricane Center said.
Swirling in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean some 1,225 miles (1,970 kilometers) east of the Leeward Islands, Gaston poses no hazard to land.
Data collected by the agency’s hurricane-tracking mission indicated maximum sustained winds near 75 miles per hour, with higher gusts, as Gaston travels in a northwest direction at 17 mph.
Early Thursday the NHC announced on its website that Gaston had become “the third hurricane of the Atlantic Season.”
However in its latest bulletin, the center reported that Gaston is “expected to weaken back to a tropical storm later today.”
Although the Atlantic hurricane season officially runs from June 1 to November 30, this year’s first hurricane — Alex — formed in January during an unusual weather event.
The Climate Prediction Center of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) initially estimated the Atlantic would see between 10 and 16 storms this year, but recently updated its prediction to 17.
Earl became this season’s second hurricane earlier this month, leaving 45 dead in Mexico.
Last year’s number of storms was below average, with 11 tropical storms in the Atlantic, six of which became hurricanes, including two major ones.
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