Aug. 19 (Bloomberg) -- Tropical Storm Fay may emerge over the Atlantic and strengthen into a hurricane within the next two days after sweeping across South Florida with 65-mph winds.
The National Hurricane Center issued a hurricane watch for a stretch of the Florida and Georgia coast. The storm's center is expected to move offshore after midnight New York time in the vicinity of Vero Beach, Florida, about 129 miles (208 kilometers) north of Miami, said Dan Kottlowski, expert senior meteorologist at private forecaster AccuWeather Inc. in State College, Pennsylvania.
``There is a good chance it will become a hurricane,'' Kottlowski said by telephone. ``There is very warm water in the Gulf Stream current off the coast; if it can get over that, some computer information says it could strengthen to at least a Category 1 hurricane.''
Fay was moving north-northeast at 8 mph and was located about 60 miles south-southwest of Melbourne, Florida, the hurricane center in Miami said in an advisory on its Web site at about 5 p.m. local time.
Surface measurements near Lake Okeechobee showed maximum sustained winds of about 65 mph with higher gusts recorded, Kottlowski said. Winds have accelerated from 60 mph when the storm made landfall on the west coast of Florida this morning because there is no wind resistance on the lake, he said.
Kottlowski said models show the storm heading over the ocean then hooking back toward the west and making landfall in Georgia on Aug. 21 or 22.
Storms become hurricanes once maximum sustained winds reach 74 mph.
Gulf of Mexico
Some models show the storm eventually re-emerging in the Gulf of Mexico, said Brian Wimer, a meteorologist for AccuWeather.
If Fay enters the Gulf, it may then make landfall between New Orleans and the Florida panhandle on Aug. 23, Jeff Masters, director of meteorology at private forecaster Weather Underground Inc., said on his blog.
Fay was forecast to bring as much as 15 inches (38 centimeters) of rain to parts of Florida. Storm tides of 1 to 3 feet (0.9 meters) above normal are possible, as are isolated tornadoes, the hurricane center said.
A tropical-storm warning was in effect along parts of Florida's east coast as well as Lake Okeechobee.
Monroe, Collier, Lee, Hendry and Charlotte counties said on their Web sites that schools are closed today.
Caribbean Deaths
The storm killed more than a dozen people in the Caribbean, including some in Haiti, the Associated Press reported.
Fay killed five people in the Dominican Republic, the country's Emergency Operations Center said on its Web site.
A man was seriously injured by flying debris in Marathon Key, Florida, while preparing for the storm, according to the Monroe County Web site.
Orange juice prices fell, after yesterday touching the highest this month as the storm approached. Florida is the world's second-largest orange grower.
Orange-juice futures for November delivery fell 3.8 percent to $1.0455 a pound on ICE Futures U.S., the former New York Board of Trade.
About 93,000 homes statewide were without power at 11 a.m. today, according to Florida Power & Light Co. statement.
The state was investigating about 40 complaints of price gouging by retailers selling gasoline, batteries, water and other emergency supplies at inflated prices, said Sandi Copes, a spokeswoman for Florida's Attorney General.
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration closed its Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, for the day because of the storm, according to a statement released by the space agency.
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