Tropical storm Orlene rapidly strengthening into hurricane

To keep up with storm activity as the season develops, bookmark the National Hurricane Center’s website and keep an eye on your hometown Patch site for local information.

Tropical Storm Ian has formed in the Atlantic, but at present, it’s not expected to present a threat to the United States.

Maximum sustained winds are 40 miles per hour, and forecasters said some strengthening is possible starting Tuesday night.

The low pressure system, about 900 miles east-northeast of the northern Leeward Islands, is generating gale-force winds, though its center is not yet well-defined. The storm is expected to move over the central Atlantic Ocean through Tuesday with some intensification, but is not forecast at this time to hit land.

Forecasters were also keeping an eye on a disturbance near the Bahamas which has been given a 10 per cent chance of becoming a tropical storm over the next five days. This is the 9th tropical storm this year.

For the rest of the week, from Wednesday through Sunday, each day has a 30-40 percent chance of thunderstorms, said meteorologist Stephen Konarik, of the National Weather Service’s Miami office.