Erin has strengthened into a Category 2 hurricane as the storm continued on a path over the Atlantic Ocean, forecasters said. Early Friday, it became the first hurricane to develop in the Atlantic this year, and it was expected to continue gaining strength, potentially growing into a major hurricane. Forecasters with the U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami have been urging people in the Caribbean islands to monitor Erin's progress, warning of the potential for heavy rainfall and life-threatening surf andrip currentconditions. Erin is not currently forecast to impact the United States, but meteorologists continue to watch it closely. The center of Erin was forecast to move just north of the northern Leewards, the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico over the weekend, the hurricane center said. Rainfall totals of up to 6 inches are possible for those islands, with the potential of flash flooding and mudslides, the hurricane center said. "Steady to rapid strengthening is expected over the next few days, and Erin is forecast to become a major hurricane during the weekend," the hurricane center said. A major hurricane is defined as a Category 3 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of at least 111 mph. Maps show Hurricane Erin's forecast path Forecasters expected Erin's path to curve northward, with the hurricane likely passing near the northern Leewards on Saturday. The northern Leewards stretch from the Virgin Islands to Guadeloupe and include St. Martin, St. Barts and other islands. Officials have issued tropical storm watches for several islands, alerting people of the possibility of winds ranging between 39 mph and 73 mph. A "spaghetti map" of the forecast models shows the storm pivoting to the north, skirting the islands and remaining well offshore of the U.S. East Coast. A high-pressure system in the Atlantic was expected to steer Erin away from the Eastern Seaboard while a cold front was also forecast to push the hurricane offshore, CBS News Bay Area meteorologist Jessica Burch reported. The storm could potentially reach Category 4 strength, with winds of at least 130 mph, early next week. On the U.S. Virgin Islands, officials with the National Park Serviceannouncedthat sites on the island of St. Croix would be closed starting late Friday afternoon until after the storm passes. First hurricane of the Atlantic season Erinformed as a tropical stormon Monday west of the island nation of Cabo Verde, a few hundred miles off Africa's western coast. It is the fifthnamed stormof the 2025 Atlantic hurricane season, which started in June and runs through November. So far this year, Tropical Storm Chantal is the only one to have made landfall in the U.S., bringingdeadly floodingto North Carolina in early July. In June, Barry made landfall as a tropical depression on Mexico's eastern coast. Erin's increased strength comes as the Atlantic hurricane season approaches its peak in September. According to the hurricane center, most of the season's activity typically happens between mid-August and mid-October. In the eastern Pacific Ocean, hurricane season starts on May 15 with a peak in activity typically seen in late August. The U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, or NOAA, forecast anabove-normal seasonfor the Atlantic this year, expecting between 13 and 18 named storms. Tropical storms have maximum sustained winds of at least 39 mph. Forecasters with NOAA anticipated that between five and nine of the storms this year could become hurricanes, which have sustained winds of at least 74 mph. Hurricanes arerated on a scalebased on their wind speeds, ranging from Category 1, the weakest, to Category 5, the most severe rating. Storms with winds of at least 111 mph are considered major hurricanes and are rated Category 3 and up. NOAA forecasters predicted there could be between two and five major hurricanes in the Atlantic this season. Passenger arrested after allegedly causing disturbance midair and forcing flight to divert When could Tropical Storm Erin become a hurricane? Trump, Putin speeches did not announce a ceasefire in Ukraine
