Hurricane Isaac 2012: Storm to Become Hurricane in Florida Sunday

By Audrey Barrick, Christian Post Reporter Saturday, August 25, 2012

Tropical Storm Isaac is expected to move over the Florida Keys and the southern Florida Peninsula Sunday, according to the National Weather Service. Forecasters have issued a hurricane warning for parts of Florida.

The storm swept across Haiti early Saturday, killing at least two people. Continuing on a northwest path, the storm has headed toward the north coast of Cuba with maximum sustained winds of 60 mph.

The latest public advisory on the storm was issued at 2 p.m. EDT with a hurricane warning for the Florida Keys, the west coast of Florida and Florida Bay. A hurricane warning means that hurricane conditions are expected somewhere within the warning area.

"Even if we don't get hurricane force winds, tropical storm force winds can be dangerous," said Robert Molleda, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service, according to The Palm Beach Post. "We are not recommending people be outside."

"We are going to have a lot of power outages and a good number of trees down, with the rain and the ground saturated."

The Republican National Convention is set to take place in Tampa, Fla., located on the west coast of the state, beginning Monday. Organizers are staying in contact with the National Weather Service and local emergency officials to track the potential impact of the storm.

"We will continue to work closely with them and federal officials to monitor the storm and discuss any impact it might have on the Tampa area and the state of Florida. We continue to move forward with our planning and look forward to a successful convention," said William Harris, president and CEO of the Republican National Convention, on Thursday.

Mitt Romney is scheduled to be officially nominated as the Republican presidential candidate during the convention. Some reports indicate that his nomination may come as early as Monday.