Hurricane warning discontinued for central Azores

A hurricane warning was discontinued early today for the central Azores as Hurricane Gordon continued towards the sparsely populated islands, forecasters said.

A hurricane warning remained in effect for the eastern Azores, according to the meteorological service of the Azores.

At 7am Irish time, Gordon was just barely a hurricane with top sustained winds of 75 mph, according to the National Hurricane Centre in Miami. A storm is considered a hurricane with 74 mph winds.

It was centred about 40 miles west-southwest of the island of Sao Miguel in the eastern Azores and about 90 miles south-southeast of the island of Terciera in the central Azores.

Gordon was moving towards the east near 33 mph, forecasters said. A gradual turn towards the east-northeast was expected over the next day.