Hurricane Frances was the second of four Atlantic hurricanes to affect the U.S. state of Florida during the 2004 season. A deadly and destructive tropical cyclone, Frances also struck the Bahamas and other portions of the Southeastern United States. A Cape Verde hurricane, it formed on August 25 from a tropical wave in the tropical Atlantic Ocean. Within 18 hours of developing, the depression strengthened into Tropical Storm Frances, the sixth named storm of the season. By late the next day, Frances attained hurricane status, and it strengthened further to a major hurricane by August 27. On the following day, Frances became a Category 4 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson scale, attaining maximum sustained winds of 145 mph (230 km/h). At the time, the hurricane was passing about 135 mi (215 km) north of Saint Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands.