New Orleans Begins Preparing For Hurricane Gustav

Hurricane Gustav is now moving off the southwestern peninsula of Haiti, but the storm could pose a threat to New Orleans, if history repeats itself.

A tropical storm warning has been issued for the Dominican Republic-Haiti border west to Le Mole St. Nicholas. A hurricane watch and tropical storm warning was issued for the island of Jamaica. A hurricane watch has been issued for Cuba, including Guantanamo Bay.

Gustav is currently traveling west at between 5-7 miles per hour. The storm is about 140 miles west of Port-Au-Prince, Haiti and 90 miles south-southeast of Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Hurricane paths can change depending on weather conditions, but it's expected that Gustav will travel between Jamaica and the southeastern coast of Cuba tomorrow.

Forecasters predict that once the storm moves away from Haiti it's likely to gain hurricane strength in the next couple days.

If Tropical storm Gustav follows the same path that Hurricane Katrina did three years ago, New Orleans could once again be in danger of being flooded and sustaining major storm damages.

Rebecca Waddington, a meteorologist at the Miami-based National Hurricane Center said, "We know it's going to head into the Gulf. After that, we're not sure where it's heading. For that reason, everyone in Gulf needs to be monitoring the storm. At that point, we're expecting it to be a Category 3 hurricane."

Officials in New Orleans have already begun warning coastal residents and advised them to prepare for the storm. They are also planning for a possible evacuation of the area.

Hurricane Gustav is blamed for 8 deaths in the Dominican Republic as a result of landslides. Heavy rains and high winds are expected to continue throughout the region.