Hurricane Kirk strengthens into a Category 4 storm in the Atlantic

MIAMI (AP) — Hurricane Kirk was a major Category 4 hurricane on Thursday, and the system's waves could cause life-threatening surf and rip current conditions this weekend on the U.S. East Coast as well as in Bermuda, the Greater Antilles and the Bahamas, forecasters said.

Kirk was in the central Atlantic and could strengthen even further over the next day or so, but was expected to stay away from land, the Miami-based US National Hurricane Center said.

Waves caused by Kirk were expected to reach parts of the Leeward Islands on Friday, Bermuda and the Greater Antilles on Saturday, and the East Coast and the Bahamas on Sunday, the center said.

There were no coast guards or warnings. The severe hurricane occurred about 1,085 miles (1,745 kilometers) east-northeast of the Northern Leeward Islands with maximum sustained winds of 130 miles per hour (215 km/h).

Meanwhile, Tropical Storm Leslie formed in the eastern Atlantic late Wednesday and could strengthen into a hurricane on Friday, forecasters said. It was also not yet seen as a threat to the country.

The storm was located about 580 miles (930 kilometers) west-southwest of the southernmost tip of the Cabo Verde Islands and had maximum sustained winds of 50 miles per hour (85 km/h), the center said.

The storms raged in the Atlantic Rescuers in the southeastern United States searched for missing people Hurricane Helene hit last weekleave behind a trail of death and catastrophic damage.