Irma is currently some 480 miles (770 kilometers) west of Cape Verde, the Miami-based National Hurricane Center said in its 2100 GMT bulletin.
It has maximum sustained winds of 60 miles (95 kilometers) per hour and is moving west at a speed of 15 miles per hour.
Irma comes in the wake of Harvey, which has pummeled Texas and Louisiana with soaking rains for days, unleashing deadly floods and leaving thousands of homes under water.
The storm is currently far from land, but heading straight towards the southern Caribbean, to the area between the US island territory of Puerto Rico and South America's northern coastline.
"Some strengthening is forecast during the next 48 hours and Irma is expected to become a hurricane Thursday or Friday," the NHC said.
Irma is forecast to reach the Lesser Antilles islands in the Caribbean in the middle of next week.
| The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, is Copyright 1995-2026 Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principles for news reporting and research purposes. |
