Hurricane Helene weakens to storm near Azores on Thursday, says NHC

Sept 12 (Reuters) - Hurricane Helene is forecast to gradually weaken over the next couple of days and may become a tropical storm on Thursday, the U.S. National Hurricane Center (NHC) said on Wednesday.

Helene was located about 1,285 miles (2,065 km) south-southwest of the Azores in the Atlantic with maximum sustained winds of 85 miles per hour (140 km per hour), the NHC said.