Five named Atlantic storms are being tracked on Monday, and there’s just one more name left for this hurricane season.
The closest to the United States is Sally, which reached hurricane strength Monday, the National Hurricane Center said. It was 140 miles south of Pensacola, Florida, on Monday morning, and a hurricane warning had been issued for the Alabama coast.
The four other named storms over the Atlantic:
- Paulette: Hurricane passing close to Bermuda with sustained winds of 100 mph.
- Rene: Tropical depression stationary, no warnings or watches.
- Teddy: Tropical storm expected to strengthen as it moves toward the Lesser Antilles.
- Vicky: Tropical storm expected to be short-lived. Forecast calls for it to weaken to a remnant low by Thursday.
There are no names assigned for the letters Q, U, X, Y and Z. For this season, which officially ends November 30, only Wilfred remains.
After that, Greek letters would be used to identify any storms that reach the naming threshold. That system was used in 2005 — the year of Katrina — when six storms formed after Wilma, in mid-October.
This is only the second time in recorded history that the Atlantic basin has had five tropical cyclones at once, meteorologist Philip Klotzbach told the Associated Press.
Sally was expected to make landfall by early Tuesday, but its path was not yet clear. If it takes a westerly track, New Orleans could be hit, the hurricane center said.
