Tropical Depression Thirteen strengthened into Tropical Storm Laura Friday morning.
A hurricane hunter aircraft found maximum sustained winds of around 45 miles per hour, with the center of circulation south of what was previously thought.
Laura was located about 230 milers east-southeast of the northern Leeward Islands, moving west at 21 miles per hour.
The tropical storm is currently forecast to become a hurricane as it moves over the eastern Gulf of Mexico next week.