Tropical Depression 4 organizes and should strengthen

A storm south of Cuba was being staged with the aim of hitting the west coast of Florida and the Gulf of Mexico, with federal forecasters saying it was likely to become a tropical storm late Saturday.

Until then, the front is called Tropical Depression Four, with the name Debby available if it develops into a tropical storm.

Maximum sustained winds of 30 mph kept it below the 39 mph threshold for tropical storm status Friday night, but the National Hurricane Center said it would continue to strengthen. It was 75 miles south of Caibarien, Cuba, at 11 p.m. ET.

The front transitioned from Potential Tropical Depression Four to Tropical Depression Four on Friday night as it gained strength in the warm waters of the Caribbean.

“It was expected to become a tropical storm in the southeast Gulf of Mexico late Saturday,” the hurricane center said in an update Friday.

The National Weather Service has issued a tropical storm warning for the west coast of Florida from as far south as Boca Grande. The warning means winds of 39 to 73 mph are expected over the next day or so, along with a storm surge, coastal flooding and heavy rain.

Much of that area, including Tampa Bay, was also covered by a storm surge warning, which warns of the possibility of potentially fatal flooding as coastal waters and other waterways flood, rise and move over dry land. .

A tropical storm warning is also in effect for some areas, including the Florida Keys south of the Card Sound Bridge.

The hurricane center said the front would link up to the north in the Gulf of Mexico and would simmer off the west coast of Florida through early Sunday, bringing with it 1 to 4 feet of storm surge flooding, 4 to 8 inches of rain and up to 12 inches. of rain in some areas.

In Cuba, rainfall of 1 to 2 inches, with larger amounts possible, is possible in Cuba.

The depression would “continue to strengthen in the eastern Gulf of Mexico through the weekend,” the hurricane center said.

The depression could be the fourth named storm of the North Atlantic hurricane season, slightly ahead of schedule, with the average date for the development of a fourth named storm being Aug. 15, according to Colorado State University meteorologist. Philip Klotzbach.

However, the northern hemisphere has been relatively calm, he said. in X last month. It produced six named storms in mid-July, the lowest number by mid-July since 1969.