Tropical Storm Ida forms off coast of Nicaragua

The ninth named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season - Tropical Storm Ida - has formed off Central America and is churning in the western Caribbean Sea.

"This is nothing of immediate concern, just something to check in on every once in a while and see what's going on," said Dennis Feltgen, spokesman for the National Hurricane Center, said earlier Wednesday. "There is no reason to panic."

Feltgen said the tropical system formed in an area that typically spawns storms in late October and early November.

At 4 p.m. Wednesday, forecasters said the storm was 75 east of Bluefields, Nicaragua, and was expected to make landfall overnight.

Maximum sustained winds had increased to near 60 mph with higher wind gusts. And the U.S. National Weather Service predicted it might grow stronger before landfall.

"In a few days," a recent hurricane center forecast discussion said, "the atmospheric environment could allow for some reintensification of the system over the northwestern Caribbean Sea. However ... it is entirely possible that the tropical cyclone could dissipate over the higher terrain of Central America."