Hurricane Irma Could Strengthen To Category 5, Forecasted To Be “Extremely Dangerous”

By  //  September 1, 2017

ABOVE VIDEO: Hurricane Irma strengthens to category 3 storm. (Fox News Video)

(FOX NEWS) – Powerful Hurricane Irma is expected to strengthen over the eastern Atlantic Ocean during the weekend — potentially becoming as potent as a Category 5 storm as it whirls its way towards a possible landfall.

Irma formed and strengthened to a Category 3 storm on Thursday and was forecast to be an “extremely dangerous” storm for the next several days, according to The National Hurricane Center.

“The models are trending towards perhaps curving away from the U.S.,” Fox News meteorologist Janice Dean said, adding the storm, however, was coming “a little too close to comfort for the East Coast.”

The storm was moving west-northwest near 13 mph. Its maximum sustained winds had increased to near 110 mph.

So far no coastal watches or warnings were in effect but it was too early to determine if it would make landfall or pose a threat to the United States.

Should Irma strike the U.S., it could form a devastating 1-2 punch of Category 4 storms after the havoc wreaked by Hurricane Harvey last weekend.

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