Danny Becomes Atlantic Season’s First Hurricane

Danny became the first hurricane of the Atlantic season as its top winds grew to 75 miles per hour in the seas east of the Windward Islands.

The Category 1 storm, about 1,090 miles (1,754 kilometers) from the islands, which include St. Vincent and Grenada, was moving west-northwest at 12 mph (19 kph), the U.S. National Hurricane Center said in an 11 a.m. update.

“Danny is a small tropical cyclone,” the center said. “Hurricane-force winds only extend outward up to 10 miles from the center.”

Being the six-month season’s first hurricane may be the only significant milestone for the storm, which forecasters say could be torn apart by wind shear and dry air. While initial forecasts called for Danny to be a strong system, those estimates have fallen over the past two days.

Danny is now expected to peak at about 85 mph Friday.