Storm Is Now a Hurricane Off North Carolina
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MIAMI — After taking a zigzag path that left more than 500 dead in Haiti and ravaged winter vegetable crops in Florida, Tropical Storm Gordon confounded forecasters by turning into a hurricane Thursday and swirling northward.
At 10 p.m. EST, Gordon’s center was about 145 miles southeast of Hatteras, N.C., threatening North Carolina’s Outer Banks. The storm was packing winds near 80 m.p.h. Little change in strength was expected over the next 24 hours, the National Hurricane Center said. A flood warning was issued for North Carolina.
When it hit Florida as just a tropical storm, Gordon brought high winds and torrential rains that devastated crops in an area that supplies more than half the nation’s winter vegetables.
State officials estimated crop losses on more than 35,000 acres at $200 million and predicted a rise in produce prices nationwide.
The storm was blamed for six deaths in Florida, where it had crossed the Keys on Tuesday before churning into the Gulf of Mexico. It then cut back across the state.
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