Ernesto becomes a Category 2 hurricane, heading for Bermuda

Hurricane Ernesto strengthened into a Category 2 storm late Thursday as it barreled towards the island of Bermuda, forecasters said, while nearly 300,000 people in Puerto Rico remained without power.

John Cangialosi, a senior specialist at the U.S. National Hurricane Center (NHC), said Ernesto’s maximum sustained winds increased to 100 miles per hour (155 km/h) with higher gusts on Thursday night. Further strengthening is possible.

As of 11 p.m. AST on Thursday, the center of Ernesto was located about 410 miles (660 kilometers) southwest of Bermuda, according to NHC. The hurricane is moving to the northeast at a speed of 14 miles per hour (22 km/h).

“It seems likely that Ernesto will strengthen some more during the next 12 to 24 hours as it is expected to remain in conducive environmental conditions of low wind shear, upper-level diffluence, a relatively moist airmass, and over warm waters during that time,” Cangialosi said.

As a result, Ernesto could be near major hurricane strength (Category 3) later on Friday before weakening begins, according to forecasters. The hurricane is expected to pass near or over Bermuda on Saturday morning.

Ernesto dropped torrential rain on Puerto Rico on Wednesday when it passed the U.S. territory as a tropical storm, leaving nearly half of all 1.4 million customers without power. More than 290,000 customers remained without power on Thursday night and many had no water as well, according to AP.

It’s unclear how long it could take to restore power for all customers, many of whom questioned how a tropical storm had knocked out power and water to so many people. Puerto Rico’s power grid is still recovering from Category 4 Hurricane Maria, which killed up to 3,000 people.