A tropical depression in the Gulf of Mexico intensified into Tropical Storm Debbie on Saturday, moving across the Gulf of Mexico toward Florida.
Forecasters at the National Hurricane Center said the storm’s current maximum sustained winds were 40 mph. Debbie is located approximately 100 miles west-southwest of Key West, Florida, and is moving northwest at 15 mph.
Winds and thunderstorms have spread across a wide area, including southern Florida, the Florida Keys and the Bahamas.
Debbie could bring heavy downpours and coastal flooding to much of Florida’s Gulf Coast Sunday night, and forecasts show the system could make landfall as a severe tropical storm or hurricane on Monday and move across Florida North into the Atlantic Ocean.
Forecasters warn that heavy rain is also possible early next week in northern Florida and along the Atlantic coasts of Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina.
Debbie is the fourth named storm of the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season, following Tropical Storm Alberto, Hurricane Beryl, and Tropical Storm Chris (all of which formed in June).
The National Hurricane Center in Miami predicts the system will strengthen as it moves off the southwest coast of Florida, where water temperatures have been very warm this week, near 92 degrees Fahrenheit (33 degrees Celsius).
The system may make landfall as a severe tropical storm or hurricane
Forecasts show Debbie could make landfall as a severe tropical storm or hurricane on Monday and move across northern Florida into the Atlantic Ocean, where it could remain a tropical storm threatening Georgia and the Carolinas early next week.
A tropical storm warning was issued for much of Florida’s west coast and the Dry Tortugas, and a hurricane watch was issued for parts of Big Bend and the Florida Panhandle. Warnings indicate storms are expected within 36 hours, while watches indicate storms are possible within 48 hours.
Tropical storms and hurricanes can cause river flooding and inundate drainage systems and canals. Forecasters warned of rainfall amounts of 5 to 10 inches (125 mm to 250 mm), which could cause “locally severe” flash and urban flooding. Forecasters also warned of moderate flooding in some rivers along Florida’s west coast.
In fact, some of the heaviest rainfall could occur next week along the Atlantic coast from Jacksonville, Florida, to the North, Georgia, South Carolina and North Carolina coasts. The storm is expected to slow after landfall.
“We may see stalling or meandering motion along the southeastern U.S. coast,” National Hurricane Center Director Michael Brennan said during a Saturday briefing. “So that would not only heighten the risk of rainfall, but also intensify storms.” Possibility of tides and strong winds.”
Flat Florida is prone to flooding even on sunny days, and the storm is expected to bring surges of 2 to 4 feet (0.6 to 1.2 meters) and peak tides to much of the Gulf Coast, including Tampa Bay. It can reach 3 to 5 meters.
Forecasters warned of “risk of life-threatening storm surge inundation” in areas including Hernando Beach, Crystal River, Stanhatchee and Cedar Island. Officials in Citrus and Levy counties ordered mandatory evacuations along the coast, while officials in Hernando, Manatee, Pasco and Taylor counties called for voluntary evacuations. Shelters have opened in these and other counties.
A tropical storm warning was issued for the southern tip of the Florida Keys, and several wind gusts in excess of 45 mph were recorded.
Flood preparations underway in Florida
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis declared a state of emergency in 61 of the state’s 67 counties, and the Florida National Guard deployed 3,000 Guardsmen.
In Tampa alone, officials distributed more than 30,000 sandbags to protect against flooding.
“We’ve had our storm drains cleared. We’ve had our generators fully inspected and filled. We’re taking every step to be prepared for a tropical storm,” Tampa Mayor Jane Castor said.
Christina Lothrop is general manager of the Blue Pelican Marina in Hernando Beach, about 50 miles (80 kilometers) north of St. Petersburg ) is a barrier island. She said Saturday still looked like a normal summer day, with the public ramp across the street packed with people taking to the water.
“It’s kind of normal today, but it’s kind of weird,” Lothrop told The Associated Press by phone.
However, staff at her dock have been getting ready since Tuesday, securing the boat on racks, storing tool boxes and tying everything down.
“Right now what we’re basically doing is tying down the boats,” Lothrop said.
Before closing Saturday, Lothrop plans to lift the computers off the floor and raise the doors with sandbags and tape. Last year’s Hurricane Idalia pushed water into the store about a foot (30 centimeters) deep.
Betti Silverman, whose home in Crystal River was under an evacuation order, said she doubted her family would leave. While in Idalia, Silverman’s beach house flooded while moving in, destroying moving boxes and furniture stored in the garage. But she said the storm was not expected to be that severe.
“We’ve been in Florida our whole lives — in South Florida — so hurricanes aren’t really a big deal,” Silverman said.
Crews pulled a floating crane out of a bridge construction project in Tampa Bay on Friday, lifting 74 barges and 24 buoys, project engineer Marianne Brinson told the Tampa Bay Times. The cranes were tied together and anchored until the storm passed. Crews also placed cranes on land on either side of it.
Pinellas County has paused a $5 million beach restoration project due in part to erosion from past storms.
For some, the name Debbie brings to mind the 2012 tropical storm of the same name, which caused $250 million in damage and eight deaths, seven of them in the Sunshine State. The storm brought torrential rains along the West Coast and into northern Florida, with an astronomical 29 inches (730 mm) of rain falling south of Tallahassee.
More storms in Pacific, but no threat to land
Meanwhile, in the Pacific Ocean away from Mexico, Hurricane Carlotta continued to move westward, with maximum sustained winds of 90 mph (145 km/h). The hurricane center said Carlotta will begin losing strength on Sunday and could dissipate into the remnants of a thunderstorm within three to four days.
Tropical Storm Daniel, further to the west, formed in the Pacific on Saturday but was 1,500 miles (2,400 kilometers) from the southern tip of Baja California and was also expected to dissipate without making landfall.
