Washington - Residents of Florida's mainland were bracing themselves for the arrival of tropical storm Fay on Tuesday, which was only 70 kilometres off the city of Naples at 0700 GMT, the National Hurricane Centre in Miami reported. Fay was moving towards the coast at a speed of 12 kilometres per hour, the centre said. The storm could strengthen into a hurricane, and the centre has placed the area under a hurricane warning.
No major damage was reported after the storm hit the Florida Keys islands on Monday, where 25,000 people had fled the storm and oil off-shore platforms had been after evacuated. Many residents had boarded up their houses and stocked up on supplies.
The storm had previously caused heavy floods and mudslides on the island of Hispaniola in the Dominican Republic. More than 50 people were reported dead as a result of the storm.
190725 GMT Aug 08
