OKLAHOMA CITY -- Workers at the Storm Prediction Center in Oklahoma are keeping a close eye on Hurricane Gustav as it closes in on the Gulf Coast.

“I am forecasting gradual strengthening up to 65 knots in 48 hours,” said Russ Schneider of the Storm Prediction Center.

Forecasters said their job really begins when Gustav roars ashore.

“Our job really picks up as it approaches landfall, and we’ll follow it all the way through until there’s no longer a tornado threat,” Schneider said.

Tornadoes can be wrapped in rain bands hidden inside a hurricane’s fury. It is up to Oklahoma scientists to spot them on radar.

“Sometimes weak hurricanes have very significant tornado events associated with them,” Schneider said.

A line of tropical systems could keep forecasters at the Storm Prediction Center busy. They’re already tracking Tropical Storm Hanna in the Atlantic Ocean.

It’s just part of the job for the scientists at the center, who take their job of keeping the public safe very seriously.

“Tornadoes are a violent event, whether it’s with a hurricane or just an isolated super cell in the Great Plains,” Schneider said.