In this satellite image provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Tropical Storm Florence is shown at 6:45 am EDT is shown located east of over the Northern Atlantic Ocean, northeast of Bardados September 6, 2006

Florence, the tropical storm churning in the Atlantic Ocean since late last week, is expected to strengthen into a Category 1 hurricane by Monday en route to the southeastern U.S. coast, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said on Sunday.

The NOAA said that Florence currently has maximum sustained winds to near 75 miles per hour with strong gusts, and is likely to remain "an extremely dangerous major hurricane through Thursday," when it is expected to make landfall in the U.S.