The National Hurricane Center of the United States issued a warning that Hurricane Lee, which was churning west-northwest in the tropical Atlantic Ocean, would bring extreme surf and rip currents to the East Coast of the United States starting Sunday night and extending into the following week. Hurricane Lee was currently located in the tropical Atlantic Ocean.
It is anticipated that the storm would move inland while passing to the north of Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, and other Caribbean islands. It may be found around 270 miles (535 kilometers) to the northeast of the northern Leeward Islands at this time.
The weather expert predicted that Lee will have maximum sustained winds of 110 miles per hour (175 kilometers per hour). The highest sustained winds of the storm fell to below 111 miles per hour (178 kilometers per hour) on Sunday, which resulted in the storm being downgraded from a Category 3 to a Category 2 status.
The government office forecasted “some strengthening” for the storm, which was moving in a west-northwesterly direction at a meager 8 miles per hour (17 kilometers per hour).
All of the islands that were in the path of the waves, including Puerto Rico, Hispaniola, Turks and Caicos, the Bahamas, and Bermuda, were experiencing its affects.
On a scorching and muggy Sunday in late July, the capital city of Puerto Rico, San Juan, was bustling with activity as residents and visitors ventured out into the city as shops and restaurants welcomed customers.
During a phone conversation, Kelly Herrera, a guest service employee at the Condado Vanderbilt Hotel, which is located on the beach front of San Juan, said, “So far, it’s just a normal day.”
Herrera issued a warning that anybody in the vicinity of the water should be aware that storm-generated waves and rip currents pose a risk.
Wave heights of six to ten feet, with some reaching considerably higher, were forecasted by the National Weather Service office in Puerto Rico.