Fabian approaches Bermuda
Tropical storm warning in effect for Gulf Coast
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A satellite image taken at 11:45 p.m. EDT Wednesday.
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(CNN) -- The Bermuda Weather Service on Thursday issued a hurricane watch as powerful Hurricane Fabian closed on the resort island, the National Hurricane Center in Miami said.
At 4 a.m. EDT, the storm was 570 miles (920 kilometers) south of Bermuda with maximum sustained winds near 120 mph (195 km/h) with higher gusts. According to forecasters, Fabian is expected to fluctuate in strength over the next 24 hours.
"Fabian is moving toward the north-northwest near 8 mph (13 km/h) and this general motion is expected to continue during the next 24 hours with some increase in forward speed," the hurricane center said.
The storm's projected track will bring it very close to Bermuda by early Saturday.
The hurricane center warned of large swells and dangerous surf conditions for the northern Leeward Islands, the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico.
Forecasters also said large swells will begin to spread along portions of the East Coast of the United States over the next day or two.
Meanwhile, a tropical storm warning is in effect for the Gulf Coast of Florida from Englewood northward to Indian Pass, according to a 5 a.m. EDT advisory.
The center of the tropical depression, forecast to become a tropical storm during the next 24 hours, is about 190 miles southwest of Apalachicola.
Maximum sustained winds are near 35 miles per hour, and rainfall accumulations of three to five inches can be expected in association with the depression.
