Jose expected to strengthen; two systems bear watching to east

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MIAMI (AP) Tropical Storm Jose is expected to re-strengthen to a hurricane and produce high surfs and life-threatening rip current conditions along the U.S. East Coast as it moves up the Atlantic.

The storm’s maximum sustained winds early Friday are near 70 mph and it’s forecast to become a hurricane again later in the day.

But it’s not expected to affect Florida, WINK meteorologist Matt Devitt said.

Jose is centered about 360 miles northeast of the southeastern Bahamas and is moving west-northwest near 8 mph.

Meanwhile, a new tropical depression has formed far out over the Atlantic and is expected to become a tropical storm. The U.S. National Hurricane Center says the depression’s maximum sustained winds are near 35 mph and it’s forecast to strengthen to a tropical storm later in the day or on Saturday.

Another disturbance in the eastern Atlantic has an 80 percent chance of tropical development. Both that disturbance and the depressions are expected to move in general westward direction, and it’s still too early to tell if they’ll impact Florida, Devitt said.

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