Tropical Storm Isaac is churning over the Atlantic Ocean, poised to become a hurricane as it moves on a path heading towards Florida’s coast by next Monday, which would likely imperil the first day of the Republican National Convention in Tampa.
The U.S. National Weather Service said Isaac is dumping rains on the Leeward Islands, with its center lying around the island of Guadaloupe. Hurricane watches have been instated in a number of places, including the Virgin Islands and the U.S. commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
In a statement, Puerto Rico Governor Luis Fortuno’s office told citizens to “take necessary precautions for safety.”
The storm’s winds reached 45 miles per hour and the Weather Service said it would turn into a hurricane by Thursday near the Dominican Republic and Haiti. The storm will later move over Cuba and according to computer-generated models, would head to southern Florida by Monday. Forecasters have said that it might weaken as it moves over the three countries.
A hurricane watch was issued for all of Haiti, a nation with relatively poor infrastructure and considered especially flood-prone, while the government of the Dominican Republic issued a hurricane warning for the south coast.
Isaac brings the “risk of travel problems, downed trees, power outages, property damage, street flooding, storm surge and beach erosion,” Accuweather’s Alex Sosnowski wrote on Wednesday.
The storm forced U.S. military officials to postpone preliminary hearings at Guantanamo Bay for the alleged plotters of the September 11, 2011, terrorist attacks, including suspected mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, reported the Washington Post, citing government officials. Staff members and families of those killed in the terrorist attacks were evacuated.
Prison officials told the newspaper that most inmates’ concrete cells can withstand hurricane-force winds and inmates who are not housed in such cells with be transferred to secure structures.
But it is still unclear if the storm will directly slam into Tampa, the site of the Republican National Convention, on Monday, or how powerful it would be if it actually arrives. The Weather Service said Isaac’s “initial motion is now ... somewhat uncertain.”
Tampa Mayor Bob Buckhorn told CNN that his city is prepared if the tropical storm heads there.
“We have contingency plan after contingency plan,” he said. “We are ready in the event that it happens. I don’t think it’s going to be a factor in this particular convention. But we are prepared in the event that it is.”
It is estimated that around 50,000 people are heading to the Republican National Convention.
Buckhorn said he is “absolutely” prepared to call off the convention. “Human safety and human life trumps politics. I think the RNC recognizes that. The organizers, certainly Gov. Romney, recognizes that,” he said.
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