Hurricane Irene grows on path to US Southeast

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico?? Hurricane Irene could be a major storm with winds above 110 mph when it reaches the Southeast U.S. coast, the U.S. National Hurricane Center warned Monday as Puerto Rico cleaned up and the Dominican Republic geared up.

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Puerto Ricans awoke to flooded and debris-strewn streets following the overnight passage of Hurricane Irene, which was moving just north of the Dominican Republic as a Category 1 hurricane.

The first hurricane of the 2011 Atlantic season flooded streets, knocked down trees throughout the island, caused several rivers to overflow their banks and left more than a million Puerto Ricans without power. But there were no immediate reports of any deaths.

Gov. Luis Fortuno said the worst-hit area was the east coast, from Fajardo to Yabucoa, and he had asked the U.S. government to declare Puerto Rico a disaster area so it can gain access to emergency funds.

"This turned into a hurricane in a matter of 24 hours and crossed the entire island," Fortuno said. "This shows we need to be prepared when these systems approach."

Forecasters earlier said Irene was likely to pass south of Puerto Rico, but the storm shifted north and passed directly over the U.S. island territory overnight.

Projections for U.S. coast
Most computer forecast models show Irene swinging up parallel to Florida's east coast starting Thursday with possible eventual landfall on the Georgia or South Carolina coast early on Saturday.

Forecasters said a low pressure trough over the eastern United States was expected to shift Irene's track to the east, reducing the risk of a direct landfall in densely populated South Florida but raising the risk in the Carolinas.

"The storm is tracking north of all the big islands in the Caribbean now," said meteorologist Brad Panovich of WCNC-TV in Raleigh, N.C. "This is significant because now the storm will have little interference as it moves towards the U.S. This also means a shift in the track east squarely puts the Carolinas in the strike zone."

"I would prepare now along the entire South and North Carolina coasts," he added. "Preparing for the worst and hoping for the best is the goal here. Get your supplies and plan together today through Wednesday. Thursday we?ll know who needs to activate that plan. If you wait you?ll be fighting crowds for supplies late week."

After landfall, Irene could still be felt farther north as a hurricane or tropical storm. "Irene has the potential to implicate millions from the Southeast coast to the New England coast," weather.com meteorologist Tim Ballisty wrote.

At least some computer forecast models showing it might even sweep up near New York City early next week.

President Barack Obama was briefed about Irene while on vacation at Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts, White House officials said.

The ninth named storm of the busy 2011 Atlantic season, Irene could be the first hurricane to make landfall in the United States since Ike savaged the Texas coast in 2008.

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In Florida, Broward County emergency officials had already begun preparations Monday. Emergency management director Chuck Lanza said staff would soon begin calling roughly 1,000 people, including elderly and disabled residents, listed on their special needs registry to assess what kind of help they'll need if Irene hits South Florida.

National Hurricane Center wind speed predictions indicated Irene could become a major Category 3 hurricane by Thursday morning as it moves over the central Bahamas.

The hurricane was expected to pass near or over the Turks and Caicos Islands and the southeastern Bahamas on Tuesday before reaching the central Bahamas.

In the Bahamian capital of Nassau, Henry Vera, of Long Island, N.Y., said Irene would not cause him to cut his vacation short in Cable Beach, where he and his girlfriend are booked at a hotel until Sunday.

"I've never been in a hurricane before so I have no idea what to expect," the 29-year-old Mineola resident said. "But I'm not going to leave early, I still have a week off work and I'm still on vacation."

By late Monday afternoon, Irene was tracking north of the Dominican Republic at roughly 13 mph with maximum sustained winds near 80 mph.

The center of the hurricane was expected to miss neighboring Haiti, which shares the island of Hispaniola.

Dominican Republic authorities warned of storm surges and waves up to 15 feet high. Weeks of heavy rainfall have already caused deadly flooding in the Dominican Republic and authorities had said they may issue evacuation orders for vulnerable areas.

Irene forces Caribbean cruise ships to divert

Irene was about 70 miles northeast of Punta Cana, a major tourist zone in the east of the Dominican Republic.

Punta Cana's beaches were closed and hotels asked guests to stay indoors for safety as Irene passed by but the area appeared to have escaped any major impact.

"It was a non-event ... It was kind of just of rainy day, it could have been a lot worse," Mike Bryant, who runs a small adventure tourism company at Punta Cana, told Reuters. "Now it's just overcast and a little bit of drizzly rain".

In San Juan, several hundred people sought emergency shelter ahead of Irene, which dumped up to 10 inches of rain in Puerto Rico. People also took shelter on the outlying islands of Culebra and Vieques, where authorities evacuated 150 tourists as the storm approached.

Irene had previously churned through St. Croix in the U.S. Virgin Islands, where more than half of the inhabitants were without power on Monday.

A nearby private island estate owned by billionaire Richard Branson was destroyed overnight by fire that is thought to have been caused by lightning from Irene. Guests at the island included actress Kate Winslet.

Story: Kate Winslet escapes fire at Branson's Caribbean home

Hurricane force winds extend 30 miles from the center of Irene. Tropical storm force winds extend out 185 miles.

Reuters and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/44218395/ns/weather/

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