Tropical Storm Arlene was spotted forming in the Gulf of Mexico on Friday with strong winds and thunders visible under the white clouds.
One of the first-named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season, which lasts until November, Storm Arlene was spotted moving toward the western tip of Cuba on Friday 2 June, according to forecasters at the National Hurricane Center in an early afternoon update.
Maximum sustained winds have increased to nearly 40mph, with higher gusts, about 265 miles west of Fort Myers, Florida.