Hurricane Erin explodes in strength to a Category 5 storm in the Caribbean | 16 Aug 2025 | Hurricane Erin exploded in strength to a Category 5 storm in the Caribbean on Saturday, rapidly powering up from a tropical storm in a single day, the National Hurricane Center said. While the compact hurricane's center wasn't expected to strike land, it threatened to dump flooding rains on the northeast Caribbean as it continued to grow larger. The first Atlantic hurricane of 2025, Erin ramped up from a tropical storm to a Category 5 hurricane in a mere 24 hours. By late Saturday morning, its maximum sustained winds more than doubled to 160 mph (255 kph). Mike Brennen, director of the National Hurricane Center in Miami, said Erin's winds gained 60 mph (96 kph) in intensity within about nine hours Saturday.