Hurricane Maria is expected to become dangerous as it nears the Leeward Islands in the Caribbean. The US National Hurricane Center (NHC) said the category one hurricane will rapidly strengthen over the next 48 hours and will hit the islands later today. The NHC said Maria has maximum sustained winds of 137 kilometer per hour. It is moving roughly along the same path as Irma, the hurricane that devastated the region this month. <br/><br/>The NHC also forecasts a maximum potential rainfall of 51 centimeter across the central and southern Leeward Islands. Earlier this month, Irma left more than two-thirds of homes on the island of St Martin uninhabitable, with no electricity, gas or drinking water. <br/><br/>A hurricane watch is now in effect for the US and British Virgin Islands, St Martin, St Barts, Saba, St Eustatius and Anguilla. Some of these islands are still recovering after being hit by Irma – the category five hurricane which left at least 37 people dead and caused billions of dollars' worth of damage.