Topline
Hurricane Kirk, a Category 3 storm that is moving toward the East Coast from the Central Atlantic, could bring “life-threatening surf and rip current conditions” to parts of the United States this weekend.
Hurricane Kirk could bring dangerous swells to the East Coast on Sunday.
Key Facts
The National Hurricane Center has warned Kirk is moving northwest toward North America and, while it is not expected to hit land, could bring dramatic ocean swells.
The swells are expected to impact the Leeward Islands east of Puerto Rico on Friday, Bermuda and the Greater Antilles on Saturday and the east coast of the U.S. and Bahamas on Sunday.
Hurricane Kirk is expected to continue growing and wind speeds could reach 140 mph by Friday afternoon, which would make it a Category 4 storm.
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Key Background
Kirk is the 11th named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season and comes one week after Helene made landfall on Sept. 26th. Forecasters this year predicted the busiest storm season (from June 1 to Nov. 30) the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has ever forecasted with up to 25 named storms and 13 hurricanes expected. So far, there have been seven hurricanes (Beryl, Debby, Ernesto, Francine, Helene, Isaac and Kirk) and five named tropical storms (Alberto, Chris, Gordon, Joyce and Leslie).
Tangent
The death toll of Hurricane Helene, which made landfall on Florida’s Gulf Coast late last Thursday, continues to rise. The storm hit land as a Category 4 and moved through Florida and Georgia before hitting eastern Tennessee and western North Carolina, where it devastated a number of Appalachian towns. Asheville, North Carolina, a popular mountain tourism destination, was among the communities hardest hit. More than 50 people died in Asheville as flood waters wiped away roads and knocked out electricity and water, and more than 180 people have died from the storm so far across six southeastern states, making it the deadliest hurricane since Katrina. Hundreds are still missing. On Wednesday, President Joe Biden directed up to 1,000 active-duty soldiers to support the North Carolina National Guard in recovery efforts. Roughly 1 million people were still without power in Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia on Thursday morning, according to PowerOutage.US.
What To Watch For
Another named storm, Tropical Storm Leslie, has formed in the Atlantic and is currently about 500 miles southwest of the Cabo Verde Islands. Leslie is forecast to strengthen into a hurricane in the coming days but there are currently no watches, warnings or threats to land.
