Hurricane Lee is rapidly intensifying over the central tropical Atlantic, and is now a Category 4 hurricane. Lee has been intensifying at a remarkable pace, and has a good shot to become a Category 5 hurricane during the next day or two.

As of 5:00 p.m. EDT Thursday, Hurricane Lee was centered near 16.9°N 51.3°W, and was moving west-northwestward at approximately 15 mph. Maximum sustained winds were 115 knots (130 mph), with an estimated minimum pressure of 953 mb. This makes Lee the third major hurricane of the 2023 Atlantic hurricane season, a remarkable feat for an El Niño year prior to the climatological peak day. With light shear and sea surface temperatures near 30°C (86°F), additional intensification appears likely, as long as Lee avoids an eyewall replacement cycle. An Air Force Hurricane Hunter aircraft is currently en route to investigate Lee. The current National Hurricane Center (NHC) forecast brings Lee to Category 5 intensity for more than 24 hours, which is unusual to see in an official forecast. Eyewall replacement cycles may cause fluctuations in intensity over the next few days, but Lee is expected to remain a very powerful hurricane for about a week as it moves generally west-northwestward. At the moment, no watches or warnings are currently in effect, but rip currents and high surf are likely in the northeastern Caribbean islands this weekend and potentially the United States east coast next week. It still remains too soon to definitively determine whether Lee will make a landfall somewhere along the United States East Coast, Bermuda or Atlantic Canada.

In addition to Lee, a new tropical storm has formed over the far eastern tropical Atlantic, Tropical Storm Margot. As of 8:00 p.m. CVT (5:00 p.m. EDT) Thursday, Tropical Storm Margot was centered near 16.8°N 28.3°W, and was moving west-northwestward at approximately 17 mph. Maximum sustained winds were 35 knots (40 mph), with an estimated minimum pressure of 1004 mb. Margot is likely to only gradually intensify over the coming days due to moderate shear, but still could become a hurricane as it likely turns northward over the open tropical Atlantic.