Tropical Storm Hermine now a hurricane: US forecasters

Miami: Tropical Storm Hermine strengthened into a hurricane Thursday as it continued churning on a path toward Florida, US forecasters said.

At 1855 GMT, data from an Air Force hurricane hunter plane indicated that maximum sustained winds in Hermine were about 75 miles (120 kilometers) per hour, the Miami-based National Hurricane Center said.

That would make it a Category One hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson scale. Hermine is the fourth Atlantic hurricane of 2016.

The storm was located about 175 miles west of Tampa, Florida and moving north-northeast at 14 miles per hour.

A hurricane warning was in effect for northern Florida and authorities warned of potential strong winds and storm surges that could cause flooding.

"Hurricane conditions are expected to reach the coast within the warning area beginning tonight," the National Hurricane Center said.

"Preparations to protect life and property should be rushed to completion."

With the tropical storm approaching, intensifying winds threaten to make outside preparations "difficult or dangerous," it added.

Governor Rick Scott has declared a state of emergency in 51 counties to free up resources to brace for the storm.

The center of Hermine is expected to be near the Florida coast in the warning area by late Thursday night or early Friday, forecasters said.