FROM STAFF REPORTS

The National Weather Service has issued a hurricane watch for Bermuda, as Hurricane Bill swells over the Western Atlantic.

As of 11 a.m., Hurricane Bill is swirling as a Cat. 3 hurricane with maximum sustained winds at 120 mph. The eye of the hurricane is about 380 miles north of the Leeward Islands and about 695 miles South-Southeast of Bermuda.

Bill is moving toward the Northwest, and this general motion is expected to continue through Friday, the National Weather Service is reporting. The storm is expected to pass over open waters between Bermuda and the East coast of the United States early Saturday.

Hurricane Hill could strengthen in the next 24 hours to a Cat. 4 hurricane, the National Weather Service said.