Hurricane watch issued as TS Henri tracks toward New England

Forecasters issued a hurricane watch Friday morning for Tropical Storm Henri ahead of its projected track toward the southern New England coast.

Henri was expected to intensify into a hurricane by Saturday, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said in advisory. Impacts could be felt in New England states by Sunday.

The system was centered in the Atlantic Ocean about 370 miles (600 kilometers) south-southeast of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, and about 780 miles (1,255 kilometers) south-southwest of Nantucket, Massachusetts. It had maximum sustained winds of 65 mph (100 kph).

The hurricane watch stretched across the South Shore of Long Island from Fire Island Inlet to Montauk, and the North Shore from Port Jefferson Harbor to Montauk. It also covered the coast from New Haven, Connecticut, to Sagamore Beach, Massachusetts; and Nantucket, Martha’s Vineyard and Block Island.

The main threats were expected to be storm surge, wind and rain, forecasters said. Storm surge between 3 and 5 feet (1 to 1.5 meters) was possible from Watch Hill, Rhode Island, to Sagamore Beach.

Rainfall between 2 to 5 inches (5 to 12 centimeters) was expected Sunday through Monday over the region.

Henri was heading west early Friday but forecasters expect it to make a turn toward the north and approach the New England coast.