Hurricane Sandy Spurs Watch for Central Florida Coast
Wednesday, October 24, 2012
By: Nicole Creston

October 24, 2012 | WMFE - The east coast of Central Florida is under a tropical storm watch as the eye of Hurricane Sandy moves over Jamaica.

The watch stretches up Florida’s Atlantic coastline to the Brevard-Volusia County border.

Jamaica, Cuba, and the Bahamas are under warnings.

As of the 2:00pm update, Hurricane Sandy was located 30 miles south of Kingston, Jamaica, packing 80 mile per hour winds. The Category 1 hurricane is moving north at 14 miles per hour.

The storm is expected to take a north-northeast track over the next few days, crossing eastern Cuba tonight and the Bahamas Thursday night. 

Sandy is expected to remain well east of Florida’s Atlantic coast, but 30 to 40 mile per hour winds, dangerous surf conditions and some rain squalls are expected late Thursday night through Saturday morning along Central Florida’s coastal counties. 

Forecasters say Central Florida’s interior counties will see windy conditions, too, but they are not expected to reach tropical storm speeds. Rainfall is also expected to be minimal across Orange, Seminole and Osceola counties.