NASSAU, Bahamas — Tropical Storm Bonnie steamed through the central Bahamas on Thursday night while tracking a course that is forecast to take it over the Gulf of Mexico.
Rain and lightning raked the low-lying Turks and Caicos Islands and the Bahamas, and forecasters at the U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami said the storm could reach the Gulf by Saturday.
On Thursday night, Bonnie had maximum sustained winds of 40 mph and was near latitude 23.4 north and longitude 76.5 west, or about 125 miles south-southeast of the Bahamian capital of Nassau, and was approaching the northwestern Bahamas.
Today, the center of Bonnie was expected to pass near or over the Florida Keys and part of the southern Florida peninsula. U.S. forecasters said slow strengthening of the storm was possible during the next 48 hours.
Capt. Stephen Russell, director of the Bahamian National Emergency Management Agency, said there were no reports of major damage, flooding or injuries on islands in the southeastern and central Bahamas already passed by the storm. The storm wasn’t yet clear of the most heavily populated islands in the northeast, including New Providence and Grand Bahama.
“We are advising everyone to remain vigilant throughout the night and early morning when the storm exits the Bahamas,” Russell said.
Some experts worry the hurricane season could worsen environmental damage from the BP oil spill, with powerful winds and large waves pushing oil deeper into estuaries and wetlands and depositing more of the pungent, sticky mess on beaches.
As the storm advanced Thursday, people stocked up on water and food in the southern Bahamas and Turks and Caicos. Many businesses remained open, but schools were already closed for the summer.
Shannelle Lightbourne, 27, shopped at a market in the island of Providenciales in Turks and Caicos after hearing warnings that it would rain heavily.
Residents in the southeastern Bahamas endured heavy rains and copious lightning, but no damage or injuries had been reported. Officials with the Emergency Operations Center said they would travel to the area with basic supplies as soon as the weather improved.
A tropical storm warning was issued for the central and northwestern Bahamas, for Florida’s east coast south of Golden Beach and along Florida’s west coast northward to Bonita Beach.
The system was expected to bring heavy winds and rains to the Florida Keys in the next few days, but emergency officials said they were not planning any mandatory evacuations because they did not expect a major storm surge.
As a precaution, storm shelters will open for tourists and residents who live on boats or have special needs.
In the Dominican Republic, where about 1,500 people were evacuated, rice fields were destroyed and 14 communities left isolated after bridges collapsed. A 14-year old boy drowned Sunday in a swollen river in Puerto Rico.
Haiti’s Department of Civil Protection reported minor flooding in the northern Artibonite region but no injuries or major damage.
Information for this article was contributed by Vivian Tyson of The Associated Press.
Front Section, Pages 8 on 07/23/2010