Depression nears tropical storm intensity, forecast to threaten Florida

A tropical depression currently near the Yucatan Peninsula is approaching tropical storm intensity and expected to become a hurricane in the coming days, and forecasts by the National Hurricane Center suggest it may threaten Florida by mid-week.

The system currently known as Tropical Depression Ten was about 70 miles southeast of Cozumel, Mexico, as of an 8 a.m. update by the NHC. The system had maximum sustained winds of 35 mph and was moving southeast at 5 mph. If it spins up into named-storm status as expected, it could become Tropical Storm Idalia.

“The depression is moving toward the southeast near 5 mph (7 km/h), and it is likely to meander near the Yucatan Channel through early Monday,” the NHC forecast said. “A faster motion toward the north or north-northeast is expected later on Monday, bringing the system over the eastern Gulf of Mexico.”

The forecast projected 3 to 6 inches of rain from the storm from Tuesday into Wednesday in portions of the west coast of Florida and the Panhandle. Some areas could see 10 inches of rainfall, the NHC said.

“This rainfall may lead to flash and urban flooding, and landslides across western Cuba,” the forecast said. “Scattered flash and urban flooding can also be expected across portions of the west coast of Florida, the Florida Panhandle and portions of the Southeast U.S. by Tuesday into Thursday.”

On Saturday, the government of Mexico issued a Tropical Storm Warning for the Yucatan Peninsula from Tulum to Rio Lagartos, including Cozumel, while Cuba issued a Tropical Storm Watch for the provinces of Pinar Del Rio and the Isle of Youth.

Gov. Ron DeSantis, who was campaigning in Iowa on Saturday, declared a state of emergency for 33 Florida counties, noting the Gulf Coast is still recovering after being devastated by Hurricane Ian last year.

“I signed an Executive Order issuing a state of emergency out of an abundance of caution to ensure that the Florida Division of Emergency Management can begin staging resources and Floridians have plenty of time to prepare their families for a storm next week,” DeSantis said in a statement. “I encourage Floridians to have a plan in place and ensure that their hurricane supply kit is stocked.”

The governor’s executive order covers the following counties: Alachua, Bay, Calhoun, Charlotte, Citrus, Columbia, DeSoto, Dixie, Franklin, Gadsden, Gilchrist, Gulf, Hamilton, Hardee, Hernando, Hillsborough, Jefferson, Lafayette, Lee, Leon, Levy, Liberty, Madison, Manatee, Marion, Pasco, Pinellas, Polk, Sarasota, Sumter, Suwannee, Taylor and Wakulla.

Attorney General Moody also announced the activation of Florida’s Price Gouging Hotline.

“I have activated our Price Gouging Hotline to take complaints about extreme price increases on commodities needed to prepare for a potential storm strike,” Moody said in a statement Saturday. “Please make preparation now, pay attention to weather updates and report price gouging to my office by calling 1(866) 9NO-SCAM, visiting MyFloridaLegal.com, or downloading our app— No Scam.”