Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis has declared a state of emergency for 33 Florida counties as storm watchers are expecting Tropical Storm Idalia to make landfall on the west side of the state, between the panhandle and the Tampa Bay area, by Tuesday.
The National Hurricane Center’s midday update showed the tropical storm sitting between Yucatan Peninsula and Cuba with wind gusts of 40 miles per hour. Storm watchers expect Hurricane Idalia to be at least a Category 1 and make its landfall on land regions along the eastern side of the Gulf of Mexico on Tuesday, Fox 13 reported.
The National Hurricane Center said in a statement:
Although it is too soon to specify the exact location and magnitude of these impacts, residents in these areas should monitor updates to the forecast, have their hurricane plan in place, and follow any advice given by local officials.
Hurricane hunters began flights Sunday to collect data on the tropical storm, the Miami Herald reported.
NOAA’s Hurricane Hunters and the Air Force Reserve have seven separate flights scheduled Sunday to check out Idalia. The data they collect will help forecasters at the National Hurricane Center put a pin in the system’s center swirl, which will vastly improve the storm models and help lead to a more accurate prediction.
If the planes find the center of the storm sits more offshore, to the east of current predictions, that could sit the system over some of the warmest waters in the Gulf of Mexico, giving it time and space to strengthen before it launches north into the Gulf.
Western regions of the state are expected to experience strong winds leading to power outages and coastal flooding.
“Everyone along Florida’s Gulf Coast should prepare for potentially significant impacts from this storm, whether direct or indirect,” meteorologist Tony Sadiku warned.
This most recent tropical storm comes a little more than a week after Tropical Storm Hilary — labeled a category 4 — made landfall in Southern California, bringing record rain to the region, Breitbart News reported. It was the first tropical storm to hit Southern California in 84 years.
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