Tropical Storm Nicole is picking up strength in the Atlantic Ocean, several hundreds miles east of the Bahamas, meteorologists say. At 5 a.m. Thursday, Nicole had maximum sustained winds of 70 mph and was just shy of being named a hurricane, the National Hurricane Center said. The storm needs 74 mph winds to be named a Category 1 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale. Currently, it’s moving northwest at 9 mph but a "slow, meandering motion" is expected Thursday and Friday, the National Hurricane Center said.