Hurricane Maria Track: Is New Jersey At Risk?

Had enough of hurricanes? It's not time to rest easy. A powerful hurricane — perhaps the strongest of the season — could pose the biggest threat of all to the Northeast.

If you look at weather forecast models that track the storm, Hurricane Maria could be the one New Jersey should worry about the most.

According to the New York Times, the Category 5 storm caused "mind-boggling" damage to the Caribbean island nation of Dominica on Tuesday, ripping roofs off of buildings and inflicting untold damage. The storm is the third in a string of hurricanes to sweep through the region in recent weeks. Potentially catastrophic, it is now approaching the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico.

The spaghetti models show that Maria, with its 165-mph winds, was expected to leave the Caribbean on Tuesday. But unlike Irma, it will likely turn north and miss Florida.

After that, where it heads is anybody's guess. Some models show a direct impact on North Carolina or South Carolina. Others show it heading into our region, although it's unclear where the storm goes from there.

Will it act like Sandy and turn into New Jersey? Or will it go out to sea, as Hurricane Jose appears to be doing, and cause little more than rough seas?

Only a few models seem to indicate that the storm will head out to sea. But even if it doesn't directly impact New Jersey and instead hits south, it will still have an effect, as it could hug the coast and travel north.

Patch will keep you updated on the track of the storm in the coming days.

Watch: Hurricane Maria Is The Strongest Storm To Hit Puerto Rico In Decades

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