On the eve of Hurricane Katrina’s third anniversary, New Orleans residents are now preparing for another storm named Gustav.

National Guard troops and evacuation plans are ready, and batteries and water supplies are stocked as the area watches Hurricane Gustav travel across the Caribbean. Forecasters say the strengthening storm could slam into the Gulf Coast as a major hurricane later Thursday. Maximum sustained winds rose from about 50 mpg to near 70 mph overnight.

Some forecasters said conditions could strengthen Gustav to a Category 3 hurricane with winds of 111 mph or higher before hitting somewhere between the Florida Panhandle and Texas.

If a Category 3 or stronger hurricane comes within 60 hours of New Orleans, a mandatory evacuation order will be put into place, which includes buses and trains to take people to safety.

"I’m panicking," Evelyn Fuselier, who has only been back home in Chalmette for one year after her home was submerged in 14 feet of Katrina floodwater, told The Associated Press. "I keep thinking, ‘Did the Corps fix the levees?,’ ‘Is my house going to flood again?’ … ‘Am I going to have to go through all this again?’"

New Orleans city officials began preliminary planning to evacuate and lock down the city to avoid chaos. New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin left the Democratic National Convention in Denver to return home and prepare. Gov. Bobby Jindal declared a state of emergency to lay the groundwork for federal assistance, and put 3,000 National Guard troops on standby.

Around 8 AM EDT Thursday morning, Gustav was centered about 80 miles east of Kingston, Jamaica, and moving slowly toward the west-southwest near 6 mph.

A new tropical depression formed farther east in the Atlantic with winds near 35 mph. The depression is centered about 355 miles east-northeast of the northern Leeward Islands and is moving toward the west-northwest near 5 mph.