Simplify the following text for a Grade 8 native English-speaking person.
Original: It crossed through the Windward Islands on September 25 as a 95 mph ( 145 km\/h ) hurricane , but upper level winds weakened it to a minimal hurricane prior to its Dominican Republic landfall on September 27 .
Simplified: It went through the Windward Islands on the 25th as a hurricane with 95 mph ( 140km\/h ) winds . Upper level winds made it stay as a minimal hurricane before it got to Dominican Republic on the 27th .