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Hurricane Alex on Wednesday became the first hurricane to form in the Atlantic in January since 1938. A warning was issued for the Azores, an island cluster in the mid-Atlantic, officials say, according to the Associated Press.

Centred at about 490 miles south of Faial Island in the central Azores, the storm is headed north-northeast at 20 mph, even as the maximum sustained winds here are near 85 mph Thursday morning.

This is the third hurricane recorded in January in the area and also the first to be formed in January since there was an unnamed hurricane in 1938.

The last January storm was Alice in 1955, which had been formed in late 1954 and was carried over into the first month of 1955, said Accuweather.

Alex will bring "hurricane conditions" to central Azores by early Friday, according to The U.S. National Hurricane Center, reported the Detroit Free Press. In its wake, there may be some life-threatening flash floods and mudslides, even as a storm surge will cause significant coastal flooding here.