Caribbean Islands will be hit again by Hurricane Jose

Hurricane Jose has been upgraded to a category 3 hurricane, and it is heading for the Leeward Islands in the Caribbean.

Weather forecasters have said the hurricane has sustained maximum winds of up to 120 mph.

Earlier: Emergency attempts to reach Caribbean island communities devastated by Hurricane Irma could be affected by a second major storm threatening the region.

According to the United Nations up to 37 million people could be affected by the historic hurricane that has left at least seven dead and thousands homeless.

Irma, a category five hurricane, is expected to have passed over the Caribbean by Friday, however Hurricane Jose is expected to follow a similar path when it arrives over the weekend.

The category one storm is currently building in intensity in the north Atlantic, around 900 miles east of the Lesser Antilles where the island of Barbuda saw catastrophic damage on Wednesday.

It is feared the storm may strengthen to a potentially devastating category three hurricane, which can bring winds of up to 129mph.

Met Office meteorologist Greg Dewhurst said: "Jose is currently forecast to follow a similar track initially to Irma, moving westwards in the Atlantic and to the north and east of the Caribbean where the hurricane was on Wednesday.

"Jose's a couple of days away and the track may change, but it's forecast to come close to those islands over the weekend."

While Irma has followed a path expected to take it toward the US state of Florida, Jose is expected to swing back out into the Atlantic after grazing Puerto Rico on Saturday night.

Mr Dewhurst said: "Jose is currently a category one hurricane and it is expected to be a category three by Friday and drop back down to a category two by Saturday.

"It may not make landfall and its outer edge may only reach land. Either way there may be a risk of strong winds and rain for the north east of the Caribbean.

"Obviously Jose coming in could hamper the clearing-up process. It's one they will be keeping a very close eye on."

While the Caribbean faces the possibility of being affected by a second major hurricane, Mexico is braced for the arrival of Hurricane Katia.

The category one hurricane was headed for coast of Veracruz state where it expected to make landfall on Friday evening.