Sept. 3 (Bloomberg) -- Tropical Storm Hanna battered Haiti, where the death toll rose to more than 60 according to Agence France-Presse, and may become a hurricane by tomorrow and head for the southeast coast of the U.S. later this week.

Hanna's eye was 369 kilometers (229 miles) north of Port-de- Paix on Haiti's north coast at 10 p.m. local time, according to the U.S. National Hurricane Center. Winds were blowing at 105 kilometers per hour as the storm moved north-northwest at 20 kph.

Hanna has killed 61 people in Haiti, AFP reported. Haiti, the western hemisphere's poorest nation, and neighboring Dominican Republic have been hit by Tropical Storm Fay and Hurricane Gustav in the past three weeks.

Hanna's eye traced a circle off the north coast of Hispaniola over the past 24 hours, giving it more time to dump rain on Haiti and the Dominican Republic which share the island.

As much as 15 inches (38 centimeters) of rain is forecast to fall in Puerto Rico, as well as in Haiti and the Dominican Republic, potentially causing mudslides and flash floods, the U.S. hurricane center said.

Rains from Hanna have flooded Gonaives, a city of 300,000 people north of the capital, Port-au-Prince, AFP reported.

Hanna may hit the U.S. East Coast this weekend in the Carolinas, then sweep northeast.

Rip Currents

``Swells from Hanna are expected to increase the risk of dangerous rip currents along portions of the southeastern United States coast during the next couple of days,'' the hurricane center said in its advisory.

Florida declared an emergency to prepare for the possible approach of Hanna and residents of Georgia were advised to monitor the storm's progress.

Further east over the Atlantic Ocean, Ike strengthened into the third major hurricane of the season after its wind speeds increased to 215 kph from 185 kph three hours earlier, the U.S. hurricane Center said.

Ike is a Category Four storm, the second strongest on the five-step Saffir-Simpson scale, and is ``extremely dangerous,'' the center said.

Ike's center was 980 kilometers northeast of the Leeward Islands at 11 p.m. Miami time and moving west-northwest at about 28 kph. It's forecast to fluctuate in intensity the next day or two and be north of Haiti by Sept. 6, the center said.

``It is too early to determine what if any land areas might eventually be affected by Ike,'' the center said.

To the east of Ike, Tropical Storm Josephine weakened with winds slowing to 85 kph from 95 kph earlier. It was 685 kilometers west of the southernmost Cape Verde islands and moving west at 19 kph.

To contact the reporter on this story: Demian McLean in Washington at dmclean8@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: September 3, 2008 23:45 EDT