Matthew strengthens into hurricane in Caribbean

(KPRC)

HOUSTON – What was Tropical Storm Matthew strengthened into a hurricane Thursday afternoon in the Caribbean Sea.

According to the National Hurricane Center, the storm had winds of 75 mph and was centered northeast of Aruba, moving west at 17 mph.

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Forecasters said Matthew will move over open water through the weekend but batter islands along the South American coast with waves, high winds and rain.

Tropical storm watches were issued for Aruba and Curacao.

Forecasters said the storm will make a hard turn north by late Saturday and head toward waters between Jamaica and Haiti. The storm will likely make landfall in southeast Cuba late Monday or early Tuesday as a category 2 hurricane.

Track the tropics by downloading the free KPRC 2 Hurricane Tracker app: