Watching Joaquin

Powerful Hurricane Joaquin bore down on the lightly populated islands of the central and eastern Bahamas and forecasters said it could grow more intense while following a path that would near the U.S. East Coast by the weekend.

Some minor flooding and storm surge were reported, but there were no immediate reports of casualties or significant damage as the storm reached the island chain, said Capt. Stephen Russell, the director of the Bahamas National Emergency Management Agency.

Islands such as San Salvador, Cat Island and Rum Cay were expected to experience the most significant effects before the storm begins an expected shift toward the north, forecasters said

Joaquin was a Category 3 storm with maximum sustained winds of 120 mph and hurricane strength winds extending 35 miles from the eye, the U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami said. The storm was predicted to turn to the north and northwest toward the United States, but forecasters were still gathering data to determine how it might affect the U.S.

“There’s still a distinct possibility that his could make landfall somewhere in the U.S.,” said Dennis Feltgen, a meteorologist and hurricane center spokesman.

In New York and New Jersey, officials canceled outside events and began preparing for rough weather, even though the direction of the storm remained unknown.

The Hurricane Center said parts of the Bahamas could see storm surge raising sea levels 5 to 8 feet (as much as 2.4 meters) above normal, with 10 to 15 inches of rain falling on the central Bahamas.

The U.S. National Hurricane Center’s long-term forecast showed the storm could near the U.S. East Coast along North Carolina and Virginia on Sunday.