Tropical storm Isaac takes aim at US as residents brace for hurricane

The governor of Florida, Rick Scott, declared a state of emergency ahead of tropical storm Isaac's expected landfall Sunday night in the Florida Keys, with the storm then expected to intensify into a 105mph hurricane as it moves north into the Gulf of Mexico and towards the Alabama-Mississippi-Louisiana coastline.

But with tropical storm-force winds extending up to 200 miles from Isaac's centre, the area under threat for moderate to substantial damage covered much of southern and western Florida and along the Gulf Coast to Louisiana.

Forecasters at the National Hurricane Center have issued a hurricane warning for the northern Gulf of Mexico coast from Louisiana to the Florida Panhandle, but said it was too soon to predict where Isaac, blamed for at least six deaths in Haiti, would make its second landfall, probably in the early hours of Wednesday, Kazinform has learnt from the Guardian.

The current predicted track, subject to a wide margin of error, points the eye of the storm close to Biloxi, Mississippi, with a hurricane watch posted along the coast for hundreds of miles in either direction.

"Waters along the forecast track are very warm and upper level winds are forecast by the global models to become conducive to strengthening," said Dr Michael Brennan, a senior hurricane centre expert.

"It's important not to focus on the exact forecast track since significant hazards extend well away from the centre."

Scott cancelled his appearance at tomorrow's Republican national convention in Tampa to concentrate on storm preparations, shortly before event organisers announced that the first day and a half would be shelved anyway to allow the storm to pass.

 Full story