Hurricane Bertha heads towards Bermuda as Atlantic storm season begins with a bang
Hurricane Bertha should remain out of the oil-rich Gulf of Mexico for at least the next five days as it approaches Bermuda, meteorologists have forecast.
The centre of Bertha, which formed this morning, was located about 845 miles east of the northern Leeward Islands, the U.S. National Hurricane Centre said in an advisory.
The Leeward Island include the Virgin Islands, Anguilla, Saint Martin, Saint Kitts, Nevis, Barbuda, Antigua, Montserrat and Guadeloupe.
Stormy beginnings: A satellite image shows Hurricane Bertha, the first hurricane of the 2008 season
Heading for Bermuda: A false-color satellite view of Hurricane Bertha, right centre. It is east of the nothern Leeward Islands
While a hurricane does not form in the Atlantic every year in July, the NHC noted another Hurricane Bertha formed in 1996 which also happened on July 7.
The current Bertha was moving west by northwest at nearly 17 miles per hour with maximum sustained winds near 75 mph.
The NHC forecast Bertha would strengthen some over the next couple of days, but expects the storm to remain a Category 1 hurricane over the next five days with winds of 74-95 mph.
Energy traders watch for storms that could enter the Gulf of Mexico and threaten U.S. oil and gas production facilities.
Commodities traders also watch storms that could hit agriculture crops like citrus and cotton in Florida and other states along the Gulf Coast.
The NHC will issue another advisory at 11am.
