Hurricane Maria

Florida, still in recovery mode from the carnage of Hurricane Irma, could be spared the wrath of hurricane Maria,forecasters say.

AccuWeather senior meteorologist Rob Miller told USA TODAY that Maria, a major hurricane that has been fluctuating between Category 4 and Category 5 status, appears poised to spin north before it can reach the U.S. East Coast. A National Hurricane Center forecast map reflects similar promise.

Maria tore through the Caribbean island of Dominica late Monday and was forecast to blast through Puerto Rico on Wednesday. Miller said the storm wouldn't reach the eastern U.S. until early next week, making it too early to determine its path with certainty.

"We do look at a wide range of computer models and solutions," he said. "Its seems at this point that most likely track for Maria would be similar to Jose, staying off the coast but maybe close enough to clip the Outer Banks, maybe New England" with wind and rain.

Jose remained a Category 1 hurricane Tuesday morning, with 75-mph sustained winds driving rip currents and rough surf along much of the U.S. East Coast, a pattern that could continue for a few days.

Tropical-storm warnings were posted along the southeastern New England coast, including most of the Rhode Island and Massachusetts coastline. Jose will produce heavy rain as it passes near southern New England and the Mid-Atlantic on Tuesday and Wednesday, the hurricane center said.

A similar path for Maria would be joyous news for Florida, Georgia and South Carolina, states still in recovery mode after being battered by Hurricane Irma.

"We don't want to let our guard down," Miller said. "But the consensus is that the storm keeps off the coast, maybe significantly off the coast."

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