PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti - Tropical Storm Isaac strengthened as it swirled toward an expected landfall on Haiti's southern peninsula Friday night, threatening the poor nation with punishing rains but unlikely to gain enough steam to strike as a hurricane.
Forecasters said the storm would likely stay below hurricane force until it reaches the Gulf of Mexico on Sunday, and they shifted its projected track back eastward and it remained a possible threat to Tampa, Fla., where the Republican National Convention starts Monday.
Government and international aid groups in Haiti's capital were prepared to evacuate several thousand people from settlement camps that sprang up in the aftermath of the 2010 earthquake. But the main threat appeared aimed at Les Cayes, a city of about 45,000 people on the southwestern coast that is prone to flooding.
Isaac was expected to dump up to 8 to 12 inches of rain on the island of Hispaniola, which is shared by Haiti and the Dominican Republic. Haiti is heavily deforested and just a few hours of steady rain can trigger deadly mudslides.
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"That kind of rain is going to cause some life-threatening flash floods and mudslides," said Dennis Feltgen, a spokesman for the U.S. Hurricane Center in Miami.
Isaac was centered about 90 miles south-southeast of Port-au-Prince, the Haitian capital, Friday night, with maximum sustained winds of 65 mph. It was moving west at 10 mph. Tropical-force winds extended nearly 200 miles from the storm's center.
Cuba declared a state of alert Friday for six eastern provinces, according to a Civil Defense announce-ment, and five central provinces were put on preliminary watch.
In the southeastern coastal town of Siboney, Cuban medical and military personnel unloaded beds, oxygen tanks and mattresses at a makeshift clinic.
Haitian Prime Minister Laurent Lamothe urged people to avoid crossing rivers and to stay calm. He said the government had set aside about $50,000 in emergency funds and had buses and 32 boats on standby for evacuations.
