Hurricane Sam was a strong category 4 storm Tuesday morning, with winds of 130 miles per hour.
Swells generated by the system remain the biggest threat to land. The National Hurricane Center said they were impacting the Leeward Islands and would spread to parts of the Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, Hispaniola, the Bahamas and Bermuda by Thursday or Friday.
"Significant swells will likely reach the east coast of the United States and Atlantic Canada by the weekend," the NHC added. "These swells will likely cause life-threatening surf and rip current conditions, and beachgoers and other interests along these coasts are urged to follow the advice of lifeguards and local officials through the upcoming weekend."
There were also three areas of interest in the NHC's tropical weather outlook from Tuesday morning.
A broad area of low pressure located several hundred miles southwest of the Cabo Verde Islands continues to produce an area of disorganized showers and thunderstorms. Environmental conditions are conducive for gradual development, and a tropical depression is likely to form during the next couple of days while the system moves westward to west-northwestward at 5 to 10 mph over the central tropical Atlantic.
Showers and thunderstorms are showing signs of organization in association with a tropical wave and broad area of low pressure located over the far eastern tropical Atlantic. Environmental conditions are conducive for development, and a tropical depression is likely to form in a day or two while the disturbance moves west-northwestward at 10 to 15 mph over the eastern tropical Atlantic.
A well-defined low pressure area associated with the remnants of Peter is located about 350 miles east-northeast of Bermuda. The associated showers and thunderstorms have increased a little this morning, but are still not well organized. This system could become a short-lived tropical depression while moving northeastward at about 10 mph before upper-level winds increase on Wednesday.