by Donald Wood
Last updated: 12:00 PM ET, Mon September 18, 2017
UPDATE 2:00 AM AST
Hurricane Maria, which powered up from a category 1 to a category 5 hurricane in less than a day has started to wreak havoc in the Caribbean as the storm roughly follows the same path of devastation taken by Hurricane Irma just a couple weeks prior.
On Monday evening, Maria battered Dominica with winds topping out at 160 mph, the strongest storm to ever hit the island.
In a Facebook post, Dominica's Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit noted that the storm had torn the roof off of his house, an act which he said, "triggered an avalanche of torn away roofs in the city and the countryside."
The Prime Minister also wrote that for now, he was focused on rescuing the trapped and securing medical attention for the injured.
"We will need help, my friend, we will need help of all kinds," he wrote.
Now the storm has set its sights on the U.S. Virgin Islands, which were heavily battered by Hurricane Irma. Maria is expected to reach the USVI by Tuesday afternoon and then move on to Puerto Rico by Tuesday evening or early Wednesday morning.
In the U.S. Virgin Islands, where the island of St. John and St. Thomas were heavily damaged by Hurricane Irma, Governor Kenneth Mapp has ordered residents to cease Irma recovery efforts and instead switch to preparing for Maria.
While Irma skirted much of Puerto Rico, affecting mostly the northeastern coast, it looks as if the U.S. territory could experience a direct hit from Maria, if it continues its current path.
At the Puerto Rico Convention Center, where many Irma evacuees still reside, volunteers are gearing up for Hurricane Maria.
As of the National Hurricane Center's update at 2:00 a.m. AST, Monday evening, Hurricane Maria's intensity had decreased slightly to a category 4 hurricane, but more fluctuations are expected in the coming days and it is expected to remain "an extremely dangerous category 4 or 5 hurricane while it approaches the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico."
ORIGINAL TEXT
The Caribbean is in for another possible hurricane.
The National Hurricane Center announced Monday that Hurricane Maria is expected to become a "dangerous major hurricane" as it moves toward Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
According to ABCNews.com, Maria is currently a Category 1 hurricane and is expected to reach Caribbean islands by midweek. The storm was measured with maximum sustained winds of 90 miles per hour and is expected to become a major hurricane as it reaches the Leeward Islands.
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By Wednesday, the National Hurricane Center said Maria could intensify to a Category 4 hurricane as it reaches Puerto Rico. As for the Leeward Islands, they could begin feeling the impact of the storm by Monday night.
"Maria is likely to strengthen significantly, and is expected to be at major hurricane intensity when it affects portions of the Leeward Islands over the next few days, bringing dangerous wind, storm surge and rainfall hazards," a National Hurricane Center spokesperson said.
"Maria is likely to affect the British and U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico by mid-week as a dangerous major hurricane."
[READMORE]READ MORE: Surviving Irma: 'We are Caribbean People, We are Strong'[/READMORE]
Hurricane watches have been issued for the U.S. and British Virgin Islands, while a hurricane warning has been issued for Puerto Rico and the Leeward Islands, according to WFSB.com. In addition, a tropical storm warning is in effect for Antigua and Barbuda, Saba, St. Eustatius and St. Lucia.
Much of the Caribbean is still reeling from the damage caused by Hurricane Irma.
Hurricane Maria is just one of the three storms systems in the Atlantic Ocean. Hurricane Jose is currently moving north on a path parallel to the East Coast and is threatening to bring strong winds, heavy rain and coastal flooding to parts of the Northeast.
As for Tropical Storm Lee, which is traveling on a similar route to Maria, it is already weakening and expected to dissipate before actually making any kind of landfall.
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