Hurricane Delta Intensifies to Category 3

Delta intensified into a Category 3 hurricane on Tuesday and was expected to become an “extremely dangerous” Category 4 storm by the time it reaches Mexico, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said.

The storm, which is the ninth named hurricane of the season, was about 320 miles east-southeast of Cozumel, Mexico, the center said. As of Tuesday morning, Delta had maximum sustained winds of 115 miles per hour with higher gusts.

The government of Mexico had issued a hurricane warning from Tulum to Dzilam, the center said, and tropical storm warnings were in effect for the Cayman Islands, a portion of western Cuba, Isle of Youth, Punta Herrero to Tulum, and Dzilam to Progresso.

Delta is expected to approach the northern Gulf Coast later this week. While the exact track of the storm remains uncertain, there is a risk of dangerous storm surge, wind and rainfall along the coast from Louisiana to the western portions of the Florida Panhandle beginning Thursday night or Friday.