Tropical Storm Dean strengthened in the open Atlantic on Wednesday and was expected to become the season's first hurricane. Dean was located about 910 miles east of the Lesser Antilles, the string of Caribbean islands that stretches from Trinidad in the south to the Virgin Islands in the north, and speeding west-northwest at 22 mph. It had sustained winds near 65 mph and was getting stronger. "Further strengthening is forecast during the next 24 hours and Dean could become a hurricane later tonight or early Thursday," the hurricane center said. The center's long-range forecast had Dean crossing the Lesser Antilles near St Lucia and Martinique on Friday as a Category 1 hurricane on the five-step Saffir-Simpson scale with top winds of 95 mph. Dean was then expected to become a Category 3 hurricane with winds topping 110 mph as it heads through the Caribbean Sea toward Jamaica early next week, possibly strengthening further. Reprinted from Caribbean Net News caribbeannetnews.com