Hurricane Isaac and Tropical Storm Joyce move through the open Atlantic far from land

MIAMI – Hurricane Isaac was a Category 2 storm far from land in the North Atlantic on Saturday, while Tropical Storm Joyce continued its path over open water well to the east of the Caribbean.

Isaac had maximum sustained winds of 100 mph (155 kph) and was about 645 miles (1,040 kilometers) west-northwest of the Azores archipelago, which lies west of mainland Portugal. It was moving toward the northeast at 18 mph (30 kph), according to the National Hurricane Center.

Far to the south, Joyce had maximum sustained winds of 45 mph (75 kph), and its center was about 1,080 miles (1,735 kilometers) east of the Northern Leeward Islands, which are on the eastern ring of the Caribbean. It was heading to the west-northwest at 9 mph (15 kph), the hurricane center reported.

Neither storm posed any threat to land, forecasters said, and both were expected to weaken in the coming days.

Hurricane Helene, which made landfall as a Category 4 storm early Friday, left an enormous path of destruction across the southeastern United States and has left at least 56 dead.