TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) —Fred, still a tropical depression, has continued moving along the northern coast of Cuba, dumping heavy rain over portions of the island country.
Without the ability to fly into Cuban airspace, the hurricane center is limited when it comes to predicting exactly where the storm will head and how strong it will become. In our 11 a.m. “Tracking the Tropics” show, we will explain why we have the “blind spot” and take a look at the storm’s projected path.
You can watch the show in the video player above.
In its 11 a.m. ET advisory, the National Hurricane Center said Fred was about 270 miles southeast of Key West with maximum sustained winds of 35 mph. It was moving west-northwest at 35 mph.
Storm Team 8 Meteorologist Leigh Spann said Fred was “expected to slowly strengthen today and possibly become a tropical storm again.”
“The big question is exactly when the storm turns to the north and begins to track up Florida’s west coast,” Leigh added.
The system is forecast to move along or just north of eastern and central Cuba Friday, then near the Florida Keys on Saturday. It should be near the west coast of Florida on Sunday, forecasters predict.
“The timing of the worst weather for us remains basically unchanged,” Leigh said. “”Gustier conditions Saturday with some stronger wind gusts Sunday. Sunday will also be a rainy day with some tropical downpours possible. Those downpours may lead to localized flooding but no “surge” is really expected. Coastal areas south of Tampa Bay may have higher tides Sunday morning.”
Parts of Florida, including the Keys, south and central Florida north toward Big Bend, could see 3 to 7 inches of rain with some areas seeing isolated amounts of 10 inches. Forecasters warn the heavy rain could lead to areal, urban and small stream flooding, and could potentially worsen river flooding in northern Florida.
The heavy rain could move into portions of the southeastern United States and into the southern and central Appalachians.
Fred is expected to dump 1 to 3 inches of rain over Cuba and the eastern Bahamas with some areas seeing isolated amounts of 5 inches. The western Bahamas could see 3 to 5 inches of rain with isolated maximum totals of 8 inches.
A Tropical Storm Warning is in effect for:
- The Florida Keys west of Ocean Reef to the Dry Tortugas
- Florida Bay
A Tropical Storm Watch is in effect for:
- The Cuban provinces of Villa Clara, Sancti Spiritus, Ciego de
Avila, and Camaguey - The southwest coast of Florida from Englewood south and east to
Ocean Reef