PHILADELPHIA -
Sandy has now become a category-one hurricane in the Atlantic Ocean, and a general northward motion is expected to continue through Friday.
The storm, located about 30 miles south of Kingston, Jamaica, as of 2 p.m., has maximum sustained winds of 80 mph and is moving north at 14 mph, according to the National Hurricane Center.
That's slightly faster and more northerly than it was moving Wednesday morning.
A tropical storm watch along the east coast of Florida was extended northward earlier in the day, and tropical storm conditions are possible in the watch area along the east coast of Florida on Friday.
Jamaicans have stocked up and are hunkering down as the storm makes its way toward the island.
Forecasters predicted the strength gain seen early Wednesday, and landfall is expected in Jamaica later in the day. Schools are closed and the airport has also been shut down.
Weather officials say the storm is predicted to drop as much as 6 to 12 inches of rain across Jamaica, Haiti and the Dominican Republic and eastern Cuba, with isolated maximum amounts of 20 inches possible.
Storm surge will raise water levels by as much as 1 to 3 feet above normal tide levels along the southern and eastern coast of Jamaica, 3 to 5 feet in southeastern Cuba, and 5 to 8 feet in the some parts of the Bahamas.
Tropical storm force winds extend outward up to 140 miles.
The National Weather Service in Mount Holly, N.J., says "much uncertainty remains" with regards to an approaching cold front and the storm's track. Forecasters are calling it a "potentially high impact event" and say they're watching it closely.
They're noting that the combination of the cold front and storm "has the potential to produce high winds, heavy rain, river/stream flooding, and coastal flooding."
One NWS document says it could be a "Halloween Week Nor'easter."
Several of the latest "spaghetti models" Wednesday afternoon have the storm curling out to sea. But four of the eight models have it making an East Coast landfall.
LINK: MyFOXHurricane.com 'Spaghetti Models'
