The forecast track for Tropical Storm Isaac continues to show a western move away from close contact with the Republican National Convention.
But the Florida Keys and the western side of the state, particularly the Panhandle, remain in the potential path of the storm that still must cross Haiti and a large portion of Cuba. And that could impact the strength of the storm.
For the convention, the potential for heavy impacts diminishes with the latest forecast.
At this point everyone is comfortable were going to have a great convention, Gov. Rick Scott told the media at the Florida Emergency Operations Center in Tallahassee. The delegates are coming down, theyre going to have a great experience. Theyre going to see a little bit of rain, a little bit of wind in Florida; theyre going to see how nice people are in Florida.
Scott, who has been in contact about the status of the storm with soon-to-be Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney, said he has yet to decide if a state of emergency will be needed for areas that remain in the storms five-day track.
At this point, Scott added, no evacuation for the Keys is considered necessary.
Tropical storm-force winds are expected to reach the Keys on Sunday afternoon.
Everybody has a plan in place, Scott said.
At 11 a.m. Friday, Isaac was moving west-northwest at 14 miles per hour toward the southern coast of Hispaniola, about 185 miles south-southeast of Port Au Prince, Haiti.
Maximum winds had picked up to 60 mph.
The center of the forecast cone puts the storm across Key West on Monday morning and reaching the western end of the Panhandle on Wednesday morning.
The forecast for the storm is expected to undertake big changes, potentially losing formation, as Isaac crosses Haiti and Cuba.
Bryan Koon, director at the Florida Division of Emergency Management, said convention delegates from across the nation will receive information in their welcome packets about tropical storm watches, storm warnings and what to do when encountering rip tides if they head into the surf while in town for the Republican National Convention.
Koon said a concern along the Big Bend may be the rains, as the region continues to dry out from Tropical Storm Debby and nearly six weeks of heavy rains.
Reach Jim Turner at jturner@sunshinestatenews.com or at (772) 215-9889.
