Tropical Storm Nate was moving across the Gulf of Mexico Friday and was expected to hit the Mexican coast by the weekend, possibly as a hurricane, forecasters said.

Bad weather caused by Nate on Thursday forced the evacuation of an oil rig in the east of the Gulf, and 10 workers were missing.

Nate was described as stationary 360 kilometers (225 miles) east-northeast of the Mexican state Veracruz, packing winds of up to 85 kilometers an hour, the Miami-based National Hurricane Center said in its 0000 GMT advisory.

"Nate could become a hurricane by Sunday," the NHC said, describing the storm's progress as erratic and adding that it was expected to dump four to six inches of rain with isolated patches of up to 12 inches over Veracruz.

Three systems are brewing in the Atlantic: Nate, fast-moving Tropical Storm Maria -- which could hit Puerto Rico early Sunday and the Bahamas next week -- and Hurricane Katia, off the US east coast and expected to remain out at sea.

The latest foul weather in the United States is the remains of Tropical Storm Lee, which slammed into the Gulf Coast on Sunday, dumping torrential rains on a huge swath of the American south, mid-Atlantic region and northeast.

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