NU Online News Service, Aug. 27, 3:19 p.m.EDT

Tropical Storm Danny is expected to avoid North Carolinaskirting the coast of the Outer Banks, but it could impactMassachusetts with near hurricane force winds between Saturday andSunday, forecasters said.

The National Hurricane Center is telling the public from theCarolinas north to New England to monitor Danny as it makes anorthwesterly turn off the off the Bahamas. A tropical stormwarning could be issued for that stretch, the NHC said.

Danny, with maximum sustained winds of 60 mph, is forecast topossibly become a hurricane by Saturday off the coast of Virginiaand Delaware. The storm could make landfall along the coast ofRhode Island or Massachusetts some time Saturday into Sunday.

On his WunderBlog at www.wunderground.com, JeffMasters, director of meteorology for Weather Underground, said atrough of low pressure on Friday night could strengthen Dannyturning it into an extra-tropical storm. He said landfall in CapeCod, eastern Maine or Nova Scotia with 55 mph to 75 mph winds "is agood bet."

Mr. Masters said forecasters are watching a tropical wave offthe coast of Africa as it moves westward. The wave could become atropical storm by next week.