PEMBROKE PARK, Fla. – South Florida is feeling fringe effects from Tropical Storm Laura Monday, while heavy rainfall and flash flooding continues over the Cayman Islands and portions of Cuba.
A Wind Advisory has been issued until 2 a.m. Tuesday for coastal Broward and Miami-Dade areas just east of Interstate 95, as well as the Upper Keys, including Key Largo.
According to the National Hurricane Center, a Hurricane Watch will likely be issued for portions of the U.S. northwest Gulf coast area by Monday evening.
Maximum sustained winds from Tropical Storm Laura remain at 65 mph. Gradual strengthening is expected, and Laura is forecast to become a hurricane by early Tuesday.
Local 10 meteorologist Luke Dorris said South Florida will feel most of Laura’s fringe weather will on Monday.
This will be in the form of peak wind gusts up to 50-55 mph possible in the Florida Keys and around 40 mph in Miami-Dade and Broward counties.
Most of the wet weather in the metro area will arrive in rain bands — it is not expected to be a steady rain.
Monroe County called off a mandatory lower Keys evacuation of live-aboard vessels, mobile homes, recreational vehicles, travel trailers and campers late last week as the storm approached that it had put in place two days ago. The Keys should expect rainfall of 1 to 2 inches.
A Tropical Storm Watch for the the Florida Keys north of Craig Key and for Florida Bay has been discontinued.
At 11 p.m. Monday, Laura was about 130 miles northeast of the western tip of Cuba, generating maximum sustained winds of 65 mph, according to the National Hurricane Center.
Laura was moving toward the west-northwest near 20 mph and this general motion with some decrease in forward speed is expected over the next couple of days. A turn toward the northwest is forecast by Wednesday. On the forecast track, the center of Laura will move near or over the southern coast of Cuba Sunday night and Monday, and move over the southeastern Gulf of Mexico Monday night and Tuesday.
Laura is expected to produce the rainfall accumulations through Tuesday in these regions:
- Western Haiti, Jamaica, and Cuba: 4 to 8 inches, with maximum amounts of 12 inches.
- Cayman Islands: 2 to 4 inches, maximum amounts of 6 inches.
- Florida Keys, Turks and Caicos and northwest Bahamas: 1 to 2 inches.
- Across the Greater Antilles this heavy rainfall could lead to life-threatening flash and urban flooding, and the potential for mudslides.
Tropical Storm Laura formed from what had been Tropical Depression Thirteen on Friday morning after a NOAA Hurricane Hunter aircraft found that the system has strengthened to those 45 mph winds.
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Laura breaks the record for the earliest 12th named storm in the Atlantic. That had been held by Luis, which formed on Aug. 29, 1995.
A Storm Surge Watch is in effect for:
- San Luis Pass Texas to Ocean Springs Mississippi
- Lake Pontchartrain, Lake Maurepas, and Lake Borgne
A Hurricane Watch is in effect for:
- Port Bolivar Texas to west of Morgan City Louisiana
A Tropical Storm Warning is in effect for:
- Cuban provinces of Villa Clara, Cienfuegos, Matanzas, Mayabeque, La Habana, Artemisa, Pinar del Rio, and the Isle of Youth
- Florida Keys from the Seven Mile Bridge to Key West
- Dry Tortugas
A Tropical Storm Watch is in effect for:
- South of Port Bolivar to San Luis Pass Texas
- Morgan City Louisiana to the Mouth of the Mississippi River
A Storm Surge Watch means there is a possibility of life-threatening inundation, from rising water moving inland from the coastline, in the indicated locations during the next 48 hours.
A Hurricane Watch means that hurricane conditions are possible within the watch area. A watch is typically issued 48 hours before the anticipated first occurrence of tropical-storm-force winds, conditions that make outside preparations difficult or dangerous.
A Tropical Storm Warning means that tropical storm conditions are expected somewhere within the warning area. A Tropical Storm Watch means that tropical storm conditions are possible within the watch area, generally within 48 hours.
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Tropical Depression Marco
Marco initially formed Friday night over the northwestern Caribbean and strengthened into a hurricane early Sunday afternoon. It was downgraded to a tropical storm Monday morning and then to a depression Monday evening as it was producing heavy rainfall and gusty winds along portions of the northern Gulf Coast.
At 11 p.m. Monday, Marco’s maximum sustained winds weakened to 35 mph.
The Tropical Storm Warning and Storm Surge Warning for the U.S. Gulf Coast have been discontinued. No coastal watches or warnings are now in effect.
Marco isn’t a threat to Florida, but still poses some danger to portions of the Gulf Coast.
“Marco is expected to produce total rainfall accumulations of 2 to 4 inches with isolated maximum amounts of 7 inches across portions of the northeast and north-central Gulf coast through Tuesday,” the National Hurricane Center said. “This rainfall may result in areas of flash, urban and small stream flooding along the same area.”