CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCSC) - Tropical Storm Milton formed Saturday afternoon just hours after it had strengthened into a tropical depression.
The National Hurricane Center says it could bring the risk of life-threatening impacts to portions of the west coast of Florida next week.
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At 5 p.m. Saturday, the center of Tropical Storm Milton was located near latitude 22.7 North, longitude 95.5 West, about 245 miles north of Veracruz, Mexico.
Milton is moving toward the north-northeast near 3 mph. A slow east-northeastward motion is expected to begin Saturday night. A slightly faster eastward to east-northeastward motion is forecast by Monday and Tuesday.
On the forecast track, the storm is forecast to remain over the southwestern Gulf of Mexico through Sunday night, then move across the south-central Gulf of Mexico on Monday and Tuesday, and approach the west coast of the Florida Peninsula by midweek.
Maximum sustained winds are near 40 mph with higher gusts. Steady to rapid strengthening is forecast during the next few days.
Milton is forecast to become a hurricane Sunday night, and it could become a major hurricane while it moves across the central and eastern Gulf of Mexico.
Tropical-storm-force winds extend outward up to 35 miles from the center.
The estimated minimum central pressure is 1006 mb or 29.71 inches.
Live 5 First Alert Meteorologist Chris Holtzman said earlier on Saturday that the forecast track's cone of uncertainty includes the edge of the Lowcountry, but said that is still days away and the cone will narrow as the forecast becomes more precise over the next few days.
A front over the southeastern U.S. is also expected to help push the storm, which would take the name Milton, away from the Gulf Coast states and the Lowcountry, pushing it across the Florida peninsula.
But gusty winds and dangerous surf conditions are possible for the Lowcountry.
The center was watching an area of low pressure all week in the Gulf of Mexico that had only a moderate chance of forming. But that changed Friday when a system in the Pacific that failed to form crossed Mexico into the Gulf and added energy to the area that drove up the chance of formation of the broader area to upwards of 70%.
By Saturday morning it had increased to 90%.
At 5 a.m. Saturday, the center of Hurricane Kirk was located near latitude 26.2 North, longitude 50.2 West, about 990 miles northeast of the Northern Leeward Islands.
Kirk is moving toward the north-northwest near 13 mph. A turn to the north is expected Saturday, followed by a faster northeastward motion on Sunday and Monday.
Maximum sustained winds are near 125 mph with higher gusts. Kirk is a category 3 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale.
Weakening is forecast through early next week, but Kirk will remain a large hurricane for the next couple of days.
Hurricane-force winds extend outward up to 60 miles from the center and tropical-storm-force winds extend outward up to 220 miles. The estimated minimum central pressure is 945 mb or 27.91 inches.
The National Hurricane Center said Leslie had strengthened into a Category 1 hurricane Friday night.
At 5 a.m. Saturday, the center of Hurricane Leslie was located near latitude 10.7 North, longitude 34.8 West, about 755 miles west-southwest of the southernmost Cabo Verde Islands.
Leslie is moving toward the west-northwest near 7 mph, and this general motion is expected to continue Saturday. A northwestward motion with an increase in forward speed is forecast to begin by Saturday night and continue through Tuesday.
Maximum sustained winds have increased to near 80 mph with higher gusts. Some additional strengthening is possible through Saturday night. A gradual weakening trend is forecast to begin on Sunday. Hurricane-force winds extend outward up to 10 miles (20 km) from the center and tropical-storm-force winds extend outward up to 70 miles (110 km). The estimated minimum central pressure is 985 mb (29.09 inches).