The Florida Department of Transportation is preparing for the storm as crews removed debris from drainage systems and roadways.
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As of Monday evening, Tropical Depression Eight had sustained winds of 35 mph and was about 140 miles southeast of Cape Hatteras. That area is also under a hurricane watch.
The depression’s maximum sustained winds are near 35 miles per hour, but the U.S. National Hurricane Center says the system is expected to become a tropical storm later in the day.
“We can not recall a case where three tropical cyclones were directly impacting the U.S.at the same time”, National Hurricane Center spokesman Dennis Feltgen said.
Should they be needed, 8,000 Florida National Guard troops are ready to be deployed, Scott said.
The hurricane center reported the system had not become better organized but advised caution.
Center spokesman Dennis Feltgen said a hurricane watch is issued even if the official forecast is only for a tropical storm, if there is enough uncertainty in the future of a system that will be in an environment favorable for development.
Rainfall was expected to slacken for areas to the east, such as Beaufort, where an inch or two was forecast.
The National Park Service announced that Cumberland Island National Seashore, off the coast of Camden County, would close at 2 p.m. Thursday and remain closed all day Friday.
Any northwest shift in the storm could bring higher winds to the Macon area.
Meanwhile, another tropical depression that formed west of Bermuda is moving toward the coast of North Carolina.
Tropical Depression 9, about 400 miles south southwest of Apalachicola, Fla., has maximum sustained winds of 35 mph and is moving north at a speed of 2 mph. Here are our current forecast impacts based on the latest forecast track.
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The hurricane center expects heavy rains over much of Florida, with isolated areas seeing as much as 15 inches. But forecasters say the storm isn’t expected to surpass tropical-storm strength as it lashes North Carolina beaches through Wednesday. That system also is expected to become a tropical storm sometime Tuesday. There is a possibility of life-threatening inundation within the next 48 hours along the Gulf coast of Florida from Aripeka to Indian Pass.
