Earl becomes major hurricane, could swipe US East Coast

Hurricane Earl strengthened to a major Category 3 storm on Monday as it lashed the Caribbean's northern Leeward Islands on a track that could see it swiping the US East Coast in the next few days, the US National Hurricane Centre said.                                           
Earl, now the second major hurricane of the 2010 Atlantic season, was churning with sustained winds of 120mph (195kph), the Miami-based center said. Additional strengthening was expected in the next 48 hours.                                            
 

The hurricane was moving west-northwest on a curving track that the National Hurricane Center said would take it east of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, in the next few days.                         

Hurricane center forecaster Jessica Schauer said authorities along the US eastern seaboard should closely monitor Earl's progress.                                           
 

"Right now it's forecast to pass off the coast of Cape Hatteras, probably within about 300 miles but that forecast track can change," she told Reuters.                                           

Schauer said a direct hit to the North Carolina coast could not be ruled out.                                           
 

On its current path, Earl posed no threat to the Gulf of Mexico, where major US oil and gas installations are located.             
 

Hovensa LLC said operations were normal at its 500,000 barrel-per-day refinery on the island of St Croix but that the refinery's harbor and all other ports in the US Virgin Islands had been closed because of Earl.                                            
 

At 11am EST (1500 GMT), the hurricane was located about 95miles (150km) east-northeast of St. Thomas in the US Virgin Islands and about 165miles (265km) east of San Juan, Puerto Rico.                                           

The hurricane buffeted the northernmost Leeward Islands with rain, winds and waves as it passed on Monday.