NJESTAD, Aruba — Felix gathered strength and became a Category 3 hurricane Sunday afternoon, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said. The storm was forecast to pass just north of the Dutch Caribbean island.
A tropical storm warning and hurricane watch were in effect for the islands of Aruba, Bonaire and Curacao.
In Aruba, about 20 miles off the coast of Venezuela, a line of jittery residents and hotel employees snaked through a hardware store in the capital of Oranjestad to purchase supplies.
"This kind of weather doesn't usually make it to Aruba, so people are definitely worried," said store cashier Mark Werleman.
2 a.m. EDT, Felix was centered about 45 miles northeast of Bonaire and 145 miles east of Aruba and was moving westward at about 18 mph, the hurricane center said.
On Saturday, Felix brought heavy rains and strong winds to Grenada as a tropical storm, snapping small boats loose from their moorings, temporarily knocking out local radio and TV stations and toppling utility lines. No injuries were reported.
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