MIAMI.- A tropical depression north of Cuba strengthened into Tropical Storm Debby on Saturday, which is forecast to become a hurricane as it moves through the Gulf of Mexico toward Florida.
The U.S. National Hurricane Center said in an update posted at 8 a.m. Sunday that Debby was about 155 miles (250 kilometers) southwest of Tampa and about 205 miles (330 km) south-southwest of Cedar Key, Florida. The storm is moving north-northwest at 13 mph (20 kph), with maximum sustained winds of 60 mph (96 kph).
The storm was expected to strengthen in the southwestern Gulf and become a hurricane before making landfall in Florida’s Big Bend region, according to the hurricane center.
Gusty winds and thunderstorms were widespread across a wide region, including South Florida, the state’s Keys and the Bahamas. Hurricane and tropical storm watches were in effect for sections of the state’s coastline, and a tropical storm warning was in effect for the Georgia coast.
Faced with this natural phenomenon, the President of the United States, Joe Biden, declared a state of emergency in the state of Florida just hours before the arrival of tropical storm ‘Debbie’, which is estimated to make landfall in the state as a hurricane, according to weather forecasts.
‘Debby’ is expected to hit the Big Bend region around dawn on Monday but its arrival is already bringing winds of more than 110 kilometers per hour to the area. Debby is likely to generate intense rains and flooding along much of Florida’s Gulf Coast by Sunday night.
Faced with this situation, Biden declared a state of emergency that grants full powers to the US emergency management agency, FEMA, to alleviate the effects of the hurricane.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has ordered members of the Florida National Guard to be ready to conduct search and rescue missions once Debby makes landfall as a Category 1 hurricane.
Debby is the fourth named storm of the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season, following Tropical Storm Alberto, Hurricane Beryl and Tropical Storm Chris, all of which formed in June.
The National Hurricane Center in Miami forecast the system will strengthen as it moves off the southwestern coast of Florida, where water has been extremely warm. Intensification is expected to be more rapid on Sunday.
Further west, Tropical Storm Daniel formed in the Pacific. It is located more than 1,500 miles (2,400 kilometers) off the southern tip of the Baja California Peninsula and is also expected to dissipate without making landfall.
Source: EDITORIAL with information from AP and Europa Press