After forming in the eastern Caribbean and bringing deadly rains to the Dominican Republic, Tropical Storm Noel crossed Cuba and lost some of its punch. Redeveloping over the Bahamas, it then lolled about for several days, lashing the coast of Florida with a steady east wind and eroding many of its beaches.
Yesterday, with little fanfare, the storm gained strength and developed into the fifth Atlantic hurricane of the season. With sustained winds of 80 miles an hour, Noel drifted northward and became "extratropical," no longer sustained by the heat engine of warm, tropical waters. Entering the temperate latitudes, it was now energized and steered by an approaching front.
This morning, Noel, centered off the mid-Atlantic coast, is lashing eastern Long Island, Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket with tropical force winds. The storm is expected to move rapidly to the northeast (along the approaching front), raking Cape Cod and the east coast of New England before making a direct hit on Nova Scotia.
