(CNN) -- Tropical storm Florence intensified into a Category 1 hurricane Sunday as it cut a path through the Atlantic and headed toward Bermuda with winds gusting up to 75 miles per hour, National Hurricane Center forecasters said Sunday.
The storm's center was about 360 miles south of the tiny British territory, moving north-northwest, the NHC said. Forecasters warn of storm force winds could reach 260 miles from its epicenter.
Bermuda residents should be making preparations to protect their lives and property as the storm system inched closer to the small island chain, The Bermuda Weather Service warned earlier.
NHC forecasters kept a Hurricane Watch and Tropical Storm Warning in effect for Bermuda, which means hurricane and tropical storm conditions are expected within 24 to 36 hours. A hurricane warning will likely be issued later Sunday.
Florence was ranked as a Category 1 Hurricane at 2 a.m., but forecasters predicted the storm could strengthen to a Category 2 storm, with winds in excess of 96 mph, when is passes near Bermuda early Monday.
Large ocean swells of up to 8 feet and dangerous surf, including rip currents, were affecting Bermuda's coast, as well as the northern Leeward Islands, the Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, Hispaniola and Bermuda, the hurricane center said.
Weather forecasters in Bermuda said on its current track, the center of Florence could pass less than 10 miles from the islands. However, because of the erratic nature of hurricane movement, such long-range predictions can vary.
The storm is still not seen as a threat to the U.S. East Coast because it is expected to veer off to the northeast, out into the Atlantic Ocean, after passing Bermuda.
CNN