(WASHINGTON) — Hunter Biden has filed a lawsuit in a Washington, D.C., federal court against the Internal Revenue Service over alleged “unlawful disclosures” made by a pair of whistleblowers who accused government prosecutors of mishandling their investigation into the president’s son — a claim the Justice Department has denied but nonetheless breathed fresh life into Hunter Biden’s legal tribulations.
Attorneys for Biden, 53, accused Gary Shapley and Joseph Ziegler, both veteran IRS investigators, of waging a campaign to “to embarrass and inflict harm on Mr. Biden” by improperly sharing his private taxpayer information in media interviews.
“During these interviews, Mr. Shapley and Mr. Ziegler provide unsubstantiated and selectively chosen allegations of nefarious and potentially criminal behavior,” wrote Hunter Biden’s attorney, Abbe Lowell.
The IRS “failed to take reasonable steps to prevent its personnel from unlawfully disclosing” Hunter Biden’s confidential taxpayer information in violation of the Privacy Act, Lowell argued.
After a nearly five-year probe, Hunter Biden was indicted last week on felony gun charges, two months after a plea deal he had negotiated with prosecutors fell apart under questioning from a federal judge.
Those developments happened in the wake of troubling claims made by Shapley and Ziegler, who approached Congress in April with allegations that senior Justice Department officials blocked efforts to bring more serious charges against Hunter Biden, limited their investigative scope, and refused to grant special counsel status to the Trump-appointed U.S. attorney who oversaw the case.
The Justice Department and Attorney General Merrick Garland have denied those claims, defending U.S. Attorney David Weiss’ independence over the matter. Weiss himself wrote lawmakers in June to clarify that he had “full authority” to bring charges whenever and wherever he chose.
But those denials have done little to blunt concerns that the Justice Department offered the younger Biden a “sweetheart deal” from prosecutors, as congressional Republicans have claimed. Nearly half of Americans said they were not confident that the Justice Department has handled its probe of Hunter Biden in a fair and nonpartisan manner, according to an ABC News/Ipsos poll from earlier this month.
In the course of their “media circus,” as Lowell framed it, Shapley and Ziegler made statements that fell “well outside the bounds of the whistleblower protections.”
Congressional Republicans voted in June to release the transcripts of interviews they’d conducted with the two whistleblowers. But in subsequent television and podcast interviews, the whistleblowers made statements not included in their testimony, Lowell wrote — despite instruction from the committee not to share what was discussed in the interview “to individuals not designated to receive such information.”
As a result, according to the lawsuit, the IRS shirked its responsibility to protect Hunter Biden’s tax information from being made public.
“The IRS has never instructed Mr. Shapley, Mr. Ziegler, or their representatives to refrain from publicly and unlawfully disclosing Mr. Biden’s confidential tax return information, much less taken reasonable steps to prevent its personnel from unlawfully accessing and disclosing Mr. Biden’s tax return information,” Lowell wrote.
Attorneys for Hunter Biden are seeking $1,000 in damages for each “unauthorized disclosure” of his tax information, a declaration that the IRS “willfully, knowingly, and/or by gross negligence, unlawfully disclosed Mr. Biden’s confidential tax return information,” and any documents in the IRS’ possession related to Hunter Biden’s tax information.
(LOS ANGELES) — A person of interest has been detained in the fatal shooting of a Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputy Saturday night, law enforcement sources told ABC News.
Investigators described the murder as an ambush.
Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Deputy Ryan Clinkunbroomer was fatally shot after a gray Toyota Corolla pulled up alongside the patrol car he was driving, investigators said.
Clinkunbroomer, who had been on duty, was stopped at a red light outside the Palmdale Sheriff’s Station at about 6 p.m. on Saturday.
After the Corolla drove away, Clinkunbroomer’s cruiser remained at the light, where a “Good Samaritan discovered him unconscious in his vehicle and promptly alerted Palmdale Station personnel,” police said.
Clinkunbroomer, 30, was hospitalized and later died of his injuries, police said.
“This coward of cowards took his life while he waited at a red light,” Sheriff Robert Luna said during a press conference.
Homicide investigators with the Sheriff’s Department on Sunday asked for information about the Corolla, which they described as a dark-colored sedan with a model year between 2006 and 2012.
It was being sought as a “vehicle of interest” as part of the investigation into the murder of the deputy, according to a special bulletin.
“A widely circulated video from the incident also captured a secondary vehicle traveling alongside Deputy Clinkunbroomer’s patrol vehicle, which is of significant interest to our ongoing investigation,” the department said in a statement. “We ask for the public assistance locating the vehicle and its occupants.”
The bulletin included stills of the vehicle taken from that video, officials said. Homicide investigators found the video as they began “actively conducting interviews, scrutinizing evidence, and reviewing surveillance footage,” police said.
Authorities also announced a $250,000 reward for information leading to an arrest and conviction.
ABC News’ Amanda M. Morris and Marilyn Heck contributed to this story.
(MORGANTOWN, Pa.) — Nine inmates who escaped from a Pennsylvania juvenile detention facility were taken into custody on Monday following a manhunt, authorities said.
The inmates, all of who were male, fled the facility on Sunday wearing white and gray shirts and shorts, the Robeson Township Police Department in Berks County.
The escape happened following a riot at the academy, according to another local police agency in Berks County. State and local law enforcement regained control of the detention center, authorities said, but some of the offenders escaped.
Authorities said they believed they were able to escape the youth detention facility after overtaking two female guards and stealing their keys.
All nine escapees, whose ages range between 15 and 17, were found within about two hours on Monday morning, said David Beohm, a public information officer with the Pennsylvania State Police.
At 5:45 a.m., four of the boys were tired, cold and “basically gave up,” Beohm said. They decided to knock on a door of a home selected at random on Oak Grove Road in Morgantown, Pennsylvania. The homeowner then called the authorities.
At 6:36 a.m., officials received reports of a stolen vehicle and trailer on Oak Grove Road. Inside were the other five escapees, Beohm said.
Troopers pursued with the stolen vehicle and apprehended four of the juveniles, police said. The fifth ran into a nearby field but was soon found by police. All the juveniles were taken into custody in a state that was visibly dirty, with some missing footwear, officials said.
All nine will be charged with escape, in addition to any other crimes they may have committed overnight, Beohm said.
The escapees are expected to be interviewed by a criminal investigator later Monday.
Berks County borders Chester County, the location where authorities searched for and captured escaped inmate Danelo Cavalcante after a 14-day manhunt.
ABC News’ Darren Reynolds contributed to this story.
(LOS ANGELES) — In the moments before Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Deputy Ryan Clinkunbroomer was fatally shot, a gray Toyota Corolla pulled up alongside the patrol car he was driving, investigators said.
Clinkunbroomer, who had been on duty, was stopped at a red light outside the Palmdale Sheriff’s Station at about 6 p.m. on Saturday.
After the Corolla drove away, Clinkunbroomer’s cruiser remained at the light, where a “Good Samaritan discovered him unconscious in his vehicle and promptly alerted Palmdale Station personnel,” police said.
Clinkunbroomer, 30, was transported to nearby Antelope Valley Medical Center, where he died of his injuries, police said. Investigators described the murder as an ambush. No suspects have been publicly identified.
“This coward of cowards took his life while he waited at a red light,” Sheriff Robert Luna said during a press conference.
Homicide investigators with the Sheriff’s Department on Sunday asked for information about the Corolla, which they described as a dark-colored sedan with a model year between 2006 and 2012.
It was being sought as a “vehicle of interest” as part of the investigation into the murder of the deputy, according to a special bulletin.
“A widely circulated video from the incident also captured a secondary vehicle traveling alongside Deputy Clinkunbroomer’s patrol vehicle, which is of significant interest to our ongoing investigation,” the department said in a statement. “We ask for the public assistance locating the vehicle and its occupants.”
The bulletin included stills of the vehicle taken from that video, officials said. Homicide investigators found the video as they began “actively conducting interviews, scrutinizing evidence, and reviewing surveillance footage,” police said.
Authorities also announced a $250,000 reward for information leading to an arrest and conviction.
ABC News’ Amanda M. Morris and Marilyn Heck contributed to this story.
(MORGANTOWN, Pa.) — Four inmates were taken into custody early Monday after nine had escaped Pennsylvania’s Abraxas Academy, a juvenile detention facility, the day prior, authorities said.
The inmates are male and wearing white and gray shirts and shorts, according to the Robeson Township Police Department in Berks County. Several were taken into custody near Morgantown, Pennsylvania, on Monday.
“Four of the 9 escapees were taken into custody on Oak Grove Road at 5:47 a.m.,” David Beohm, a public information officer with the Pennsylvania State Police, said on social media early Monday.
The escape happened following a riot at the academy, according to another local police agency in Berks County. State and local law enforcement regained control of the detention center, authorities said, but some of the offenders escaped.
Police have advised those in the vicinity of I-176 and Route 10 to be vigilant.
Berks County borders Chester County, the location where authorities searched for and captured escaped inmate Danelo Cavalcante after a 14-day manhunt.
ABC News’ Darren Reynolds and Victoria Arancio contributed to this story.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
(NEW YORK) — Two people have been hit with multiple charges after a 1-year-old boy died and three other young children were hospitalized after suspected opioid exposure at a Bronx, New York, day care on Friday.
Drug production equipment was also found inside the day care following the death Nicholas Dominici and the hospitalization of three other young children, according to the New York City Police Department.
Carlisto Acevedo Brito, 41, and 36-year-old Grei Mendez, now face 11 charges, including murder, manslaughter and assault.
A kilo press was discovered by police executing a search warrant inside 2707 Morris Avenue following Nicholas’ death, police said
“This is an item that is commonly used by drug dealers when packaging large quantities of drugs,” NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny said during a news conference.
It is unknown what type of drugs were potentially being manufactured or how the children came into contact with them. New York City Mayor Eric Adams would only say the four children “appear to have come into contact with an opioid.”
“We don’t know exactly what happened to those babies,” Police Commissioner Edward Caban said.
New York City Health Commissioner Ashwin Vasan said the victims somehow came in contact “with a powerful substance, which can, through either inhalation, ingestion, or in touching of the skin, intoxicate the recipient. We don’t know what happened in this case.”
The Medical Examiner will conduct an autopsy to determine the cause of death, and doctors will take urine and blood from the surviving children to try to figure out what drugs they were exposed to.
The day care, for children between 6 weeks and 12 years old, recently opened in January and just passed a surprise visit from city inspectors last week with no violations found, officials said.
Investigators said the children appear to have been exposed to the unknown opioids over an extended period on Friday. A 2-year-old boy who went home at around 12:15 p.m. was later found by his mother to be “acting lethargic and unresponsive.” The mother rushed him to the hospital, where the opioid-reversal medication Narcan saved his life, authorities said.
The children who stayed at the day care ate something at around 1 p.m. and took a nap. When workers went to wake them up at 2:30 p.m., three were unconscious, police said.
“All three children were unresponsive and demonstrating symptoms of opioid exposure. Narcan was administered to all three of these children in an attempt to save their lives.” Kenny said. “Two children survived. Unfortunately, one male, 2 years old passed away at Montefiore Hospital at 3:29 p.m.”
All the children who were hospitalized live nearby in the Bronx. None are related, authorities said.
(RIVERVIEW, Fla.) — Authorities in Florida have arrested a 14-year-old boy in connection with a shooting that left one victim dead and another in critical condition.
Reports for the shooting at the 11000 block of Lynmoor Drive in Riverview, Florida, came in on Saturday afternoon at the same time that emergency dispatchers received calls detailing a young male suspect running through the neighborhood with a handgun, according to the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office.
When deputies arrived at the scene, they contacted the suspect, who repeatedly pointed the gun to his head and threatened to shoot himself, authorities said.
The deputies then began de-escalation tactics and negotiated with the suspect for 16 minutes, ultimately convincing him to lower his weapon, Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister told reporters during a news conference.
When the teen attempted to retrieve the weapon again, deputies shot him in the hand with a rubber bullet, Chronister said.
“They used their remarkable intuition and expertise to determine this suspect was not looking to harm them, but was contemplating suicide,” Chronister said of the deputies’ actions.
During the de-escalation process, emergency units responded to the reports of the man who was shot several times and fled to a neighbor’s home for help, authorities said. The victim was transported to a local hospital in critical condition.
As the teen was being taken into custody, deputies then found another victim, who was unresponsive in a nearby driveway, according to the sheriff’s office. The woman, who is related to the suspect, was pronounced dead at the scene, officials said.
Chronister described the scene as “one that nightmares are made of.”
“This family’s lives have been forever changed,” he said. “They lost a mother. This mother’s life is over.”
ABC Tampa affiliate WFTS reported that the teen shot and killed his mother, shot her boyfriend five times and attempted to shoot his older brother.
The investigation is ongoing, the sheriff’s office said.
(LOS ANGELES) — A deputy with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department has died after being shot while sitting in a patrol vehicle in Palmdale on Saturday, his office said.
“At approximately 6 p.m. an LASD Palmdale Deputy was found in medical distress in front of Palmdale Sheriff Station,” the sheriff’s office said in a statement on social media.
Deputy Ryan Clinkunbroomer was 30 years old.
Clinkunbroomer, who was in uniform, was working in a patrol car from the Palmdale sheriff’s station when he was discovered unconscious in his vehicle by a good Samaritan, LA County Sheriff Robert Luna said at a media briefing Sunday. They immediately reported it to the Palmdale station personnel. Clinkunbroomer was transported to the Antelope Valley Medical Center, where he was treated for a gunshot wound, but later died from his injuries, Luna said.
Authorities have not publicly named a suspect or motive in the case, but Luna said he believes the shooting was targeted.
“It’s all on the table. It could have been our deputy. It could have been just the fact that he was representing the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, as one of our employees,” Luna said. “We don’t know, everything’s on the table.”
No arrests have been made.
“He ambushed and killed, murdered one of our deputies. We need your help to get him off the street,” Luna said.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Lt Gov. Eleni Kounalakis sent condolences to Clinkunbroomer’s loved ones and those with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, saying he “selflessly” served his community.
“On behalf of all Californians, we mourn the horrific, unconscionable, and shocking loss of Deputy Ryan Clinkunbroomer — a third-generation law enforcement officer whose commitment to service and justice represented the best of the Golden State,” Newsom and Kounalakis said in their statement. “Deputy Clinkunbroomer’s devotion to community and country will never be forgotten.”
The shooting was “senseless and horrific,” said Janice Hahn, chair of the L.A. County Board of Supervisors, on X.
“It is sickening, heartbreaking news,” Scott Wilk, a California state senator, said on social media. “As we learn more details, my prayers are with the deputy, their family and the entire Palmdale community tonight.”
Clinkunbroomer was an eight-year veteran of the LASD and was a third generation, Luna said on X.
“Our deputy was a devoted family member and a cherished community member. He was cowardly shot while working tirelessly to serve our community this evening. Our hearts go out to his family. We cannot fully understand their pain, but we will stand with them in solidarity and support them during this difficult time. They deserve unwavering compassion, and we will do everything in our power to provide them with assistance and care,” Luna said.
(NEW YORK) — A 1-year-old boy died and three other children were hospitalized after apparently “coming into contact with an opioid” at a home-based child care site in the Bronx on Friday, New York City police said.
The boy who died was identified by authorities as Nicholas Dominici.
One of the three children hospitalized is in critical condition, authorities said at a press conference early Saturday.
Police said they received a 911 call from a daycare center reporting three unconscious children just before 3 p.m. on Friday. When police responded, they found two boys, 1 and 2 years old, and an 8-month-old girl, all unconscious, according to the NYPD.
Investigators revealed the children appear to have been exposed to the unknown opioids over an extended period Friday.
A 2-year-old boy who went home at around 12:15 p.m. was later found by his mother to be “acting lethargic and unresponsive,” police said. The mother rushed him to the hospital, where the opioid-reversal medication Narcan saved his life.
The children who stayed at the day care ate something at around 1 p.m. and took a nap. When workers went to wake them up at 2:30 p.m., three were unconscious, according to police.
“All three children were unresponsive and demonstrating symptoms of opioid exposure. Narcan was administered to all three of these children in an attempt to save their lives,” NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny said.
The children who were hospitalized all live nearby in the Bronx. None are related.
The NYPD said they executed a search warrant at Divino Nino Daycare and discovered a kilo press – an item commonly used by drug dealers when packaging large quantities of drugs.
ABC News could not immediately reach the daycare for comment.
“This crisis is real, and is a real wake-up call for individuals who have opioids or fentanyl in their homes,” New York Mayor Eric Adams said at a press conference. “Our hearts break for these families that are involved.”
The daycare, for children between 6 weeks and 12 years old, recently opened in January and just passed a surprise visit from city inspectors last week with no violations found, according to police.
Two people — the woman running the daycare at the time of the tragedy and an unidentified man — are being questioned by detectives, with charges expected, police said.
The city medical examiner will conduct an autopsy to determine Dominici’s cause of death, and doctors will take urine and blood from the surviving children to try to figure out what drugs they were exposed to, police said.
“The mere contact is deadly for an adult and it’s extremely deadly for a child,” Adams said.
NYPD officials said this is an active criminal investigation.
“We should not be here. These children do not deserve this, so please pray for them and their families,” NYPD Commissioner Edward Caban said at a press conference.
(NEW YORK) — Hurricane Lee, a Category 1 storm churning in the Atlantic Ocean, is bringing dangerous rip currents to the East Coast before heading to New England, where a hurricane watch is in effect.
The winds and rain will reach Rhode Island, Massachusetts and Maine by Friday night.
Here’s how the news is developing. All times Eastern.
Sep 16, 4:31 PM EDT
Lee makes landfall in Nova Scotia
Lee made landfall in far western Nova Scotia around 4 p.m. as a post-tropical cyclone, according to the National Hurricane Center.
Sep 16, 4:13 PM EDT
Strong wind and rain impacts persist in eastern Maine
Lee continues to weaken Saturday afternoon and remains a post-tropical cyclone with maximum sustained winds of 70 mph, which is now tropical storm strength.
The center of Lee is near western Nova Scotia and will likely come ashore in Atlantic Canada in the next couple hours, akin to a routine nor’easter.
Weather conditions are improving across much of New England. Notable impacts moving forward are now focused over eastern Maine, where strong wind gusts and areas of rain will linger through this evening before it all wraps up by midnight.
A tropical storm warning remains in effect for portions of Maine, as well as across Nova Scotia and portions of New Brunswick, Canada.
Eastern Maine and western Nova Scotia are getting hit with the brunt of the rain and wind impacts from Lee. A wind gust of 52 mph was recently reported in Bangor, Maine.
Breezy conditions will persist along the New England coast this evening and tonight. Notable impacts should be done by midnight as what’s left of Lee races north.
Ocean impacts will be slower to improve this weekend. Rough surf and dangerous rip currents will impact a large swath of the East Coast through this evening, then begin to diminish on Sunday.
-ABC News’ Daniel Peck
Sep 16, 3:57 PM EDT
102K without power in New England
More than 102,000 customers are without power in New England, including more than 93,000 in Maine, amid weather impacts from Lee, according to PowerOutage.us.
Sep 16, 5:54 AM EDT
Lee becomes post-tropical as it approaches Nova Scotia
Still producing hurricane-force winds, Lee has been downgraded to a post-tropical storm as it approaches Nova Scotia on Saturday morning.
The remnants of Hurricane Lee — now basically an extreme Nor’easter — are bearing down on coastal New England and Canada. But even though Lee is now post-tropical, the storm remains strong as it produces huge waves, life-threatening rip currents, strong winds and widespread rain to New England, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick.
Data from an Air Force Reserve Hurricane Hunter aircraft indicate that maximum sustained winds remain near 80 mph with higher gusts at Lee’s center.
Lee is expected to be at or just below hurricane strength when it reaches Nova Scotia later today.
On the forecast track, the center of Lee will continue to approach the coast of Nova Scotia this morning. Lee is then expected to turn toward the north-northeast and northeast and move across Atlantic Canada tonight and Sunday.
By 10 p.m. tonight, rain will be northeast of America and completely in Atlantic Canada.
Winds will be simply “windy” down to “breezy” by Sunday morning with gusts of only 15-30 mph at 7 a.m. Sunday in New England.
For now, Tropical-storm-force winds extend outward up to 390 miles from Lee’s center.
Swells generated by Lee are affecting the U.S. Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, Hispaniola, the Turks and Caicos Islands, the Bahamas, Bermuda, the east coast of the United States and Atlantic Canada. These swells are likely to cause life-threatening surf and rip current conditions.
Rip currents alerts are set to a high risk from New England all the way to Florida as the entire Atlantic coast of America will be seeing life-threatening rip currents today. Through tonight, Lee is expected to produce rainfall amounts of 1 to 4 inches over far eastern Massachusetts, eastern Maine, western Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick.
Sep 15, 5:08 PM EDT
Lee’s latest forecast
Lee is picking up speed as it moves north and is now about 290 miles southeast of Nantucket, Massachusetts.
The rain will start to hit southeastern New England Friday evening with winds increasing overnight. The storm will last in the region through Saturday afternoon.
Lee, currently a Category 1 hurricane, is forecast to weaken to a tropical storm by Saturday afternoon.
The rough surf, big waves and dangerous rip currents will persist across much of the East Coast through Saturday.
Lee will likely come ashore in Canada — in western Nova Scotia or western New Brunswick — by Saturday afternoon or early evening.
Sep 15, 3:03 PM EDT
Tropical storm warnings in effect along New England coast
Hurricane Lee will pick up speed over the next 24 hours as it races up the East Coast.
Tropical storm warnings are in effect along the coast from Massachusetts to Maine. Coastal flood advisories and high surf advisories are also in effect.
The rain will begin in southeastern New England Friday night, with winds strengthening overnight. Wind gusts up to 60 mph are possible in Cape Cod and Nantucket.
Lee, now a Category 1 hurricane, is forecast to weaken to a tropical storm on Saturday.
Most of the rain and wind will hit southeastern New England on Saturday and then shift toward Maine later in the day.
The rough surf will likely persist along New England’s coast through Saturday night, but major flooding is not expected.
Lee is forecast to reach the shore in Canada, in western Nova Scotia or western New Brunswick, by Saturday afternoon or early evening.
By Sunday morning, the impacts from Lee will be ending in Maine and Nova Scotia.
Sep 15, 12:57 PM EDT
Massachusetts declares state of emergency
Massachusetts has joined Maine in declaring a state of emergency as Hurricane Lee approaches.
A tropical storm warning has been issued in the state. The rain will begin Friday night in Massachusetts, starting on Cape Cod, Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard after 9 p.m. and reaching Boston after midnight.
“Drivers should plan ahead if traveling during severe weather,” Gov. Maura Healey tweeted. “Heavy equipment, pumps and generators are fueled up and ready to be deployed if needed and emergency crews are on standby.”
Sep 15, 11:40 AM EDT
Lee’s strong winds to reach New England by Friday afternoon
Lee, now a Category 1 hurricane, is located about 395 miles south of Nantucket, Massachusetts, and is threatening the East Coast with huge waves.
A tropical storm warning has been issued from Massachusetts to Maine, and on Friday afternoon, tropical storm-force winds of 39 mph or higher are expected to begin in New England.
The rain will begin Friday night in Massachusetts, starting on Cape Cod, Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard after 9 p.m. and reaching Boston after midnight.
Lee will bring some minor storm surge Friday night. Waters could rise 1 to 3 feet from Long Island to Maine.
By late Saturday afternoon, Lee is expected to move into Canada, hitting the New Brunswick and Nova Scotia areas as an extra-tropical storm.
By Saturday night, Lee will move away from land.
Sep 15, 7:59 AM EDT
Huge waves will be main threat for New England on Friday
With Hurricane Lee forecast to get closer to New England by Friday night, huge waves could batter East Coast beaches and coastal communities.
Waves up to 16 feet will be possible in Long Island, New York, on Friday and Saturday.
The National Weather Service has issued a tropical storm warning from Massachusetts to Maine.
Wind-whipped rain will begin to fall in far southeastern New England near Cape Cod, Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard after 9 p.m. ET on Friday and in Boston after midnight.
Lee will push minor storm surge into the coastal Northeast areas, from Long Island to Maine, where water will rise 1 to 3 feet and some minor coastal flooding will be possible.
The worst conditions on Cape Cod and in Boston will be Friday night into Saturday morning with gusty winds, some rain, huge waves and minor coastal flooding.
ABC News’ Max Golembo
Sep 15, 6:00 AM EDT
Lee passes Bermuda, gets closer to New England
Hurricane Lee passed to the west of Bermuda late Thursday night, bringing wind gusts of up to 60 mph to the British island territory.
As of 5 a.m. ET on Friday, the eye of the storm was located about 215 miles northwest of Bermuda and 490 miles south of Nantucket, Massachusetts, according to the National Weather Service.
Lee is currently a Category 1 hurricane with maximum sustained wind speeds of 85 mph. The storm is a wide cyclone with tropical storm winds extending almost 320 miles from the center.
Lee is forecast to continue moving way from Bermuda and get closer to New England by Friday night, according to the National Weather Service.
By Saturday afternoon, Lee is forecast to move into Canada and make landfall somewhere between New Brunswick and Nova Scotia as an extra-tropical storm. Lee is expected move away from the United States by Saturday evening.
ABC News’ Max Golembo
Sep 14, 5:55 PM EDT
Maine governor declares state of emergency
Maine Gov. Janet Mills declared a state of emergency in anticipation of Hurricane Lee.
Mills also requested that President Joe Biden issue a preemptive Presidential Emergency Disaster to help facilitate federal resources and funds.
“We continue to strongly urge Maine people – particularly those Downeast – to exercise caution and to take steps to ensure they have what they need to stay safe as the storm draws closer,” Mills said in a statement.
Central Maine Power (CMP) and Versant, two utilities that operate in the state, are preparing for possible power outages and will be monitoring the grid closely, according to the governor.
Sep 14, 5:45 PM EDT
Tropical storm warnings extended along New England coast
The center of Hurricane Lee is currently about a couple hundred miles west of Bermuda, where a wind gust of 52 mph was reported, and 665 miles south of Nantucket, Massachusetts, according to the latest tracking update.
Lee remains a Category 1 storm with sustained winds of 85 mph.
A tropical storm warning has been extended up the New England coast and now covers areas from Massachusetts to Maine.
A tropical storm watch along the Rhode Island coast and a storm surge watch for Nantucket have been canceled, officials said.
A hurricane watch remains in effect for portions of the coast of Maine and into Nova Scotia.
