The Thursday night, Friday forecast is entirely dependent on the future track of Tropical Depression – future Tropical Storm Hermine – and the structure of the storm as it passes through the area.
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The storm was expected to resume a north-northeastward path later today, then turn to the northeast and pick up speed on Thursday. Winds are 35 miles per hour.
Governor Scott issued an executive order declaring a state of emergency in 42 Florida counties in anticipation of Tropical Depression 9 this morning.
Tropical Depression 9 has been upgraded to Tropical Storm Hermine Wednesday afternoon as the system gains strength in the gulf before it’s expected landfall projection on Thursday.
The National Weather Service said early Wednesday morning that the tropical depression was moving away from the state.
“As you’ve seen with prior storms there are going to be bands of significant rain”, he said, adding Florida residents should be ready in the event of heavy rain, water and downed power lines. Even though a Hurricane Watch is in effect, the track or thoughts about this storm have not changed.
A Tropical Storm Watch has been issued for the United States Atlantic Coast from Marineland, Florida to Altamaha Sound, Georgia.
Creeping northwest at 5 miles per hour in the southern Gulf of Mexico, with winds of 35 miles per hour late Tuesday afternoon, the low-pressure system was expected to turn north and then northeast as it encounters a front that is moving south from the Great Plains, forecasters said.
A hurricane watch means hurricane conditions are possible within the watch area and are typically issued 48 hours before the anticipated first occurrence of tropical storm-force winds.
After pushing into Georgia, Hermine is expected to move into the Carolinas and up the East Coast with the potential for drenching rain and deadly flooding.
The combination of a unsafe storm surge and the tide will cause normally dry areas of the coast to be flooded by rising waters moving inland from the shoreline.
Sandbags are being distributed in many Tampa Bay area locations.
Tornadoes: Isolated tornadoes are possible late tonight into Thursday morning mainly across central Florida. The system will trek west across the Atlantic Ocean over the next several days.
Hermine made landfall in Florida’s Big Bend area early Friday as the first hurricane to hit the state in more than a decade.
Most coastal areas were expected to have cloudy conditions and possibly thunderstorms through Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, however, and there could be heavy rain in southern sections. All watches and warnings for this system have been dropped.
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A Category 1 hurricane isn’t declared until winds reach 74 miles per hour.
