Storm Earl becomes a hurricane off Belize: hurricane center

(Reuters) - Tropical Storm Earl strengthened into a hurricane off the coast of Belize on Wednesday, the U.S. National Hurricane Center (NHC) said. Hurricane Earl was close to the coast of Belize and was forecast to be heading to Mexico's Yucatan peninsula after that, bringing some stormy weather to Honduras and Guatemala along the way. Earl was a Category 1 hurricane, packing winds of 75 miles per hour (121 kph), the Miami-based NHC said. (Reporting by Sandra Maler in Washington; Editing by Jonathan Oatis)