PEMBROKE PARK, Fla. – There were flood zone evacuations on Saturday in Florida’s northwest central coast after Gov. Ron DeSantis declared a state of emergency and mobilized the National Guard.
Citrus County Sheriff Mike Prendergast was in Lecanto, an area under a tropical storm warning that is home to the College of Central Florida. He was warning of the risks.
“We don’t want them to stay in the flood zone like a lot of people did last year, and then they started calling us. They had alligators, water moccasins, and rattlesnakes trying to intrude into their homes. We had manatees going through the drive-through at the Wendy’s over in Crystal River,”
A depression strengthened into Tropical Storm Debby on Saturday afternoon over the southeastern Gulf of Mexico. It was the fourth named storm of this Atlantic hurricane season.
The Gulf’s heat was set to strengthen the storm into a Category 1 hurricane on Monday, so a hurricane warning was in effect for the Florida Gulf coast, from the Suwannee River to the Ochlockonee River.
Debby is forecast to move away from Cuba, north-northwestward across the straits of Florida, and into the Gulf of Mexico Saturday night through Sunday morning.
According to the National Hurricane Center, the lower Florida Keys were on a tropical storm warning, and the middle Keys were on a storm watch. A tropical storm warning was also in effect for the Florida coast, west of the Ochlockonee River to Indian Pass, and east of the Suwannee River to Yankeetown.
A tropical storm watch was also in effect for the Florida coast west of Indian Pass to Mexico Beach. A storm surge warning was also in effect west of the Aucilla River to Indian Pass.
Southeastern Florida is not in the forecast cone, but there will be plenty of rainfall, a chance of thunderstorms, high surf, and rip currents.
The outer bands prompted coastal Monroe, Miami-Dade, and Broward counties to be under a flood watch through Sunday evening.
Low-lying and flood-prone areas were also at risk with widespread rainfall totals of 2-4 inches and the possibility of an excess of 6 inches.
WEATHER AUTHORITY