BUFFALO, N.Y. — Hurricane Lee is now back down to a weak category 1 hurricane but it is heading toward America, very far NORTH. Lee is expected to continue to weaken, to a tropical storm, and its remnants could make it over Maine during Saturday. Lee currently has sustained winds of 80 mph and is now moving to the north-northeast at about 20 mph (as of late Friday evening). Lee is currently well east of New Jersey over the Atlantic, with clouds extending into eastern New York State. Lee is expected to head northward toward New England with rain arriving to the Boston area during Saturday morning then up into Maine.
A Tropical Storm Warning is in effect for Westport Massachusetts northward to the U.S./Canada border, Martha's Vineyard, and Nantucket over the weekend, including New Brunswick from the U.S./Canada border to Fort Lawrence, including Grand Manan Island. Also for New Brunswick from Shediac to Tidnish, and Nova Scotia from Fort Lawrence to Point Tupper.
The National Hurricane Center reports that Lee is expected to produce rainfall amounts of 1 to 4 inches across parts of eastern New England into portions of New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, which may produce localized urban and small stream flooding. Also, there will be life-threatening surf and rip current conditions to include much of the east coast of the United States.
This storm bears close watching as there is a possibility the storm could shift its track a little further west (see track map above), so will monitor it closely.
On Tuesday, Governor Kathy Hochul announced "the deployment of 50 soldiers from the New York National Guard to begin preparations on Long Island. State agencies are preparing for a hurricane that could cause dangerous high surf, rip currents, coastal flooding, and beach erosion along parts of the East Coast later this week as the hurricane moves north.
“A major hurricane is currently churning in the Atlantic and we are keeping a close eye on this storm because it’s too early to predict what this potentially dangerous weather system will do,” Governor Hochul said. “Out of an abundance of caution, I have deployed the National Guard and directed state agencies to prepare emergency response assets and be ready to respond to local requests for assistance. New Yorkers in coastal areas should watch the forecast and be ready to act, if necessary, to stay safe.”
There is also a possibility the storm track could shift more to the east as it has recently, and would miss the United States.
Stay tuned for updates.
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