Hurricane Iona was expected to move westward and does not pose any land threat to the Hawaiian Islands, forecasters said.

Forecasters say Iona rapidly strengthened into a hurricane in the central Pacific Ocean and is expected to continue trekking toward the west over warm, open waters well south of Hawaii.

Hurricane Iona, the first named storm of the Central Pacific season, quickly intensified overnight into a Category 1 hurricane far southeast of the Hawaiian Islands, while a new tropical depression also formed in the basin.