Erin, Atlantic and national hurricane center
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The storm is a couple hundred miles away from the Leeward Islands and is expected to pass north of the islands and Puerto Rico this weekend. Erin has rapidly intensified into a category 4 major hurricane.
Erin developed in the eastern Atlantic, moving westward from the Cabo Verde Islands at about 20 mph (32 km/h). Infrared sensors on NOAA's GOES-19 satellite reveal colder cloud tops and deep convection near the center — signs of a strengthening system feeding on warm ocean waters.