Leslie storm slows, to continue weakening as it moves north

Leslie, a storm in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, weakened on Thursday from a hurricane to a tropical storm and is expected to continue weakening as it moves north before veering east at the weekend, the U.S. National Hurricane Center (NHC) said.

The storm is located about 430 miles (690 kilometres) east of Bermuda with maximum sustained winds of 70 miles per hour (110 kilometres per hour), the Miami-based weather forecaster said.

"Large swells generated by Leslie will continue to affect portions of the southeastern coast of the United States, Bermuda, and the Bahamas during the next few days," the NHC said. "Swells are expected to increase near the coasts of New England and Atlantic Canada by the end of the week."