VILLAHERMOSA – Hurricane watches were in effect yesterday for a stretch of Gulf Coast in southern Texas and northern Mexico as Tropical Storm Alex gained strength and appeared on track to become a Category 3 hurricane before it makes landfall later this week. Forecasters said the storm’s path could push oil from the massive Gulf oil spill farther inland.Alex was swirling through the Gulf of Mexico with winds of 60 mph on a path that would take it very near the Mexico-U.S. border sometime on Thursday, said the National Hurricane Centre in Miami, Florida. The storm is expected to become a hurricane today, and could build winds as high as 120 mph by tomorrow.Tropical storm-force winds extended up to 70 miles from the storm’ s centre yesterday, and Alex was moving slowly to the northwest. (AP)
