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Strengthening Hurricane Earl may rake U.S. east coast
Tuesday August 31, 2010
"MIAMI (Reuters) - Hurricane Earl strengthened into a powerful Category 4 storm on Monday after lashing the northeast Caribbean islands, and was expected to swipe the U.S. East Coast in the next few days, the U.S. National Hurricane Centre said.Hurricane Danielle is (L) is seen southeast of Bermuda and Tropical Storm Earl (C) is pictured west of the Cape Verde Islands, in this National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) satellite image taken August 26, 2010 and released August 28. (REUTERS/NOAA/Handout)
But the Miami-based forecasters said it was too early to say which part of the U.S. eastern seaboard might be impacted by Earl, the second major hurricane of the 2010 Atlantic season."
Earl had sustained winds of 135 mph (215 kph) and could strengthen in the next two days, the forecasters said.
The hurricane was moving west-northwest on a curving track that the National Hurricane Centre said would take it near Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, on Thursday and Friday.
A direct hit could not be ruled out, and Earl was expected to bring drenching rain, dangerous seas and surf and gusting wind to the Atlantic Coast from North Carolina to New England and Canada, said Alex Sosnowski, a senior meteorologist for private forecaster AccuWeather.
"How nasty the weather gets in this region will depend on the exact track of Earl and its proximity to the coast," Sosnowski said in a posting on the AccuWeather website.
If Earl swings farther west than expected, heavy rain could sweep the Interstate 95 corridor from North Carolina to Washington, D.C., Philadelphia and New York City, he said.
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