ORLANDO, Fla. Category 1 Hurricane Humberto continued to grow in the Atlantic with its path taking it away from Florida this morning, according to the National Hurricane Centers 5 a.m. update.
Humberto grew overnight, now with maximum sustained winds of 85 mph, and is moving northeast at 5 mph into the Atlantic, with only Bermuda in its cone of uncertainty, forecasters said.
Hurricane-force winds extend outward up to 30 miles from Humbertos center and tropical-storm-force winds extend outward up to 150 miles.
Meteorologists expect Humberto to speed up its forward motion while approaching Bermuda late Wednesday.
While Humberto continues to put distance between itself and the United States, effects of the storm are expected on the coast as swells generated by the hurricane are forecast to be seen from east-central Florida up to North Carolina over the next few days, the NHC said.
The NHC also said the swells are expected to produce dangerous surf conditions and life-threatening rip currents.
Our biggest risk will likely be the enhanced seas, swells and rip currents at our Atlantic beaches through at least Wednesday or Thursday, Fox 35 meteorologist Brooks Tomlin said after Sundays 11 p.m. update. Central Florida will tap into much drier air from Wednesday into next weekend, lowering rain chances and humidity. Itll feel like a slight taste of fall.
The northwestern Bahamas is also expected to be affected by Humbertos swells.
There also is no longer a tropical storm warning for the northwestern Bahamas, but the storm is expected to bring 1-3 inches with pockets of 6-inch rain to parts of the island nation, although not much storm surge threat is projected.
There are two tropical waves in the nearby area meteorologists are keeping their eyes on: the first is in the Gulf of Mexico and has a low chance of development, the second is located in the central tropical Atlantic and has an 80% chance of developing into a tropical depression over the next five days.
