Tropical depression Fred was attempting to reorganize Friday morning after being shredded as it crossed the land masses of Haiti, the Dominican Republic and Cuba. The storm system is expected to regain strength and organization as it heads toward Florida on Friday night.
Tropical storm warnings have been issued for the Florida Keys and Florida Bay. Other parts of South Florida, including the Fort Myers area, are under a tropical storm watch, as are several regions of Cuba.
The tropical depression had maintained maximum sustained winds of 35 mph was located 270 miles southeast of Key West, Florida, according to the 11 a.m. update from the National Hurricane Center. It was moving west-northwest at 12 mph, the hurricane center said.
Fred is expected to return to tropical storm strength Friday night or early Saturday morning as it turns north and parallels the western Florida coast, similar to the track of last month’s Tropical Storm Elsa. It could strengthen to a midlevel tropical storm — packing maximum sustained winds of 50 mph — before making landfall along the Florida Panhandle by early Monday morning.
There is a possibility for isolated tornadoes associated with Fred’s tropical rain bands for parts of central and South Florida beginning Saturday morning. As much as 3 to 7 inches of rain could fall across the Keys, and central and northwestern Florida could see as much as 10 inches of rain through Monday. Flooding and rapid river rises remain the most significant threat from the storm. Storm surge from swells generated by Fred could enhance the risk for coastal flooding, especially in low-lying areas like Tampa Bay.
After making landfall, Fred is forecast to plow inland and combine with a frontal system, dumping heavy rain and causing flash flooding for portions of the Southeast and into the southern and central Appalachians.
Another tropical system is following in Fred’s wake. The storm, which would be called Grace, was located 850 miles east of the Lesser Antilles as of Friday morning. It has an 80 percent chance of development over the next 48 hours, forecasters said, and is expected to strengthen into a tropical storm by Saturday night. The storm would bring strong winds and 3 to 6 inches of rain to several of the Caribbean Islands, Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic through Sunday.
According to some forecasts, the storm could become Hurricane Grace. If that occurs, it would become the second hurricane of the 2021 season.
Source: | This article originally belongs to Nbcnews.com
