Hurricane Elsa Is Earliest "E" Named Storm In July, Not The Strongest

MIAMI (CBSMiami) - Friday morning Tropical Storm Elsa was upgraded to hurricane Elsa after a hurricane force wind was observed in Barbados.

While it is not common to see hurricanes so early in the season in the Atlantic and Caribbean, it clearly is possible. Elsa may have broken the record for the earliest "E" named storm of the season, but there have been stronger storms almost as early that took similar paths through the Caribbean.

Up until last year, it was 2005 that held the record as the most active season in the Atlantic and Caribbean. That season saw three hurricanes in the month of July, two of which became major storms.

Dennis moved through the Caribbean and became a hurricane south of Hispaniola on July 6th. A day later it was a major category 4 storm moving near Jamaica towards Cuba. It was the strongest Atlantic hurricane to ever form before August, a title which it held for only a few days before category 5 hurricane Emily formed a few days later.

Dennis would make two landfalls in Cuba before turning north into the Gulf and impacting the Florida Panhandle and Alabama. Emily would move over the Yucatan Peninsula July 16, then in Mexico again south of Texas two days later.

While Elsa is not expected to be a major storm, it will join a handful of other storms that formed in June and July impacting the Caribbean and Cuba.