Oil, natural gas and gasoline prices climbed today as traders worried that Tropical Storm Gustav will become a major hurricane before reaching the oil production areas in the Gulf of Mexico.

The AccuWeather.com Hurricane Center reports that Gustav has weakened to a tropical storm after making landfall over Haiti on Tuesday afternoon.

However, the storm will intensify as it moves over the warm water of the Caribbean and is expected to be a Category 3 hurricane by the time in moves through the Yucatan Channel into the Gulf of Mexico. Gustav would become the first major hurricane in the Gulf since Wilma during the historic 2005 hurricane season.

According to Expert Senior Meteorologist John Kocet, "There is nothing in Gustav's path that will hinder development. There is a strong probability that it will be a Category 3 storm by the time it enters the Gulf, and it has the potential to strengthen into a Category 4 or 5 storm over the Gulf."

That potential has energy investors worried. The Associated Press reports that oil prices today jumped above $119 a barrel before dropping to just over $117. The upturn in prices was bolstered by losses by the U.S. dollar against other major currencies. Natural gas prices also rose today, gaining 18.9 cents, or 2.28 percent.

Analysts say the potential for damage to Gulf Coast refineries could send prices at the pump climbing just in time for the Labor Day weekend.

At least one oil company is preparing for Gustav. Royal Dutch Shell LLC announced today that, "Shell today began evacuating personnel not essential to producing and drilling operations in the Gulf. We expect to bring in around 300 people today. These evacuations will have no impact on production."

According to the company website, more than 80 percent of Shell's U.S. oil and gas production comes from the Gulf of Mexico. Shell has approximately 1,400 contract and full-time employees in the Gulf.

Spokespeople for other oil companies operating in the Gulf told AccuWeather.com on Tuesday that they are monitoring Gustav and will take appropriate actions when they become necessary.

Analysts say there is a greater awareness of the vulnerability since hurricanes Katrina and Rita struck the Gulf Coast in 2005. Katrina closed 95 percent of offshore output in the Gulf, while almost 19 percent of U.S. refining capacity was idled because of storm-related damage and blackouts.

Almost three years to the day after Katrina devastated New Orleans and the Gulf Coast states, Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal is telling Louisiana residents they need to prepare for the potential of evacuations.

The Governor's Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness has activated the Crisis Action Team and is monitoring Gustav.

In a statement on the agency website, Director Mark Cooper says, "As the anniversary of Hurricane Katrina lingers in the air we want to make sure that residents of Louisiana are better prepared for the next storm. Now is the time to make sure that you have an evacuation plan and know what to bring with you if Gustav threatens the coast of Louisiana."

On Tuesday, Gov. Jindal said the Louisiana National Guard has been put on alert. He emphasized that all the plans are tentative and that evacuation may not be necessary.

Assisted evacuations could begin as early as Friday, with evacuations from hospitals and medical care facilities beginning on Saturday. Evacuations by rail also could begin Saturday.

Rail evacuations and contra-flow, in which all lanes of major highways would direct traffic away from the impact area, could begin on Saturday or early on Sunday.

The Army Corps of Engineers is echoing Gov. Jindal's call for Louisianans to be prepared.

Interim pumps and gates at the Orleans Ave. Outfall Canal. (USACE Photo)

Maj. Tim Kurgan tells AccuWeather.com that there have been major improvements to the hurricane protection system in New Orleans; however, "There is concerns about the track of Gustav."

"All of the damage from Katrina has been repaired, the system now is higher and stronger than before Katrina, but the improvements to the system won't be to the 100-year level of protection until 2011."

Associated Press reports that eight people died Wednesday in the Dominican Republic in a landslide triggered by Gustav. "They were all members of a family who had taken shelter since Tropical Storm Fay and left to go home because they thought the danger had passed," said civil defense agency director Luis Luna Paulino. The dead included a 2-year-old and a 7-month-old.

Haitian civil protection director Marie Alta Jean-Baptiste said at least three people have been confirmed dead after Gustav made landfall Tuesday afternoon in Haiti. The victims included a young girl swept off a bridge by flood waters and a man killed in a landslide.

The storm is expected to move slowly to the north-northwest over the next few days. Four to 8 inches of rain will fall on Hispaniola, Jamaica and eastern Cuba, with some areas receiving as much as 16 inches.

The storm could pass over the Cayman Islands early on Friday before passing between Cuba and the Yucatan Peninsula overnight on Saturday.