Hurricane Erin rapidly intensified Saturday, becoming the first Category 5 hurricane of the Atlantic season after strengthening from a tropical storm in just 24 hours. The National Hurricane Center reported that Erin's maximum sustained winds more than doubled to 160 mph (255 kph) by late Saturday morning.

Officials in the northern Caribbean are warning of heavy rains and dangerous swells as Tropical Storm Erin approaches the region.

Erin has strengthened into a hurricane as it approaches Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands, bringing heavy rains that could cause flooding and landslides.

As of Wednesday afternoon, Tropical Storm Erin is churning in the Atlantic Ocean and moving toward the Caribbean, likely to become the season’s first hurricane, a storm with sustained winds above 74 miles per hour.