'Life-threatening' Tropical Storm Debby takes aim at Florida's Gulf Coast
By Rich McKay
Aug 4 (Reuters) -Tropical Storm Debby is expected to whip up rain and high surf as it churns over Gulf Coast waters on Sunday, crawling north along Florida's coast before making landfall as a "life-threatening" hurricane on Monday, forecasters said.
"It's become clearer and clearer that Debby will become a hurricane before it makes landfall," said Jamie Rhome, deputy director of the National Hurricane Center, urging people to heed evacuation orders.
Debby became a named tropical storm late on Saturday after days as a broad, sloppy system in the Atlantic, leaving Cuba's northern coast on Saturday evening, when it was about 100 miles (160 km) west-southwest of Key West, Florida, the NHC said.
It was crawling at 14 mph (23 kph) into the Gulf Coast about 260 miles (390 km) south-southwest of Tampa, where its winds were expected to accelerate from 45 mph up to 70 mph or more as it gains strength and becomes a hurricane by Sunday night.
"This is a life-threatening situation," the NHC said in a report. Rhome said there were "a host of hazards, not just the wind."
He warned of storm surges up to seven feet (two meters) along Florida's Big Bend area where it is expected to hit just southeast of the peninsular state's Panhandle.
"Now, I stand at six feet tall," Rhome said. "So that's over my head," he said. Heavy rains of 10 inches (25 cm) with spots of 15 inches of rain could be expected, more if the storm slows down or stalls over land, he said.
Debby is expected to lose some strength after landfall but bring heavy rain as it cuts across Central Florida out to the Atlantic coast. It is then expected to crawl up to Savannah, Georgia, and then toward Charleston, South Carolina, early in the week.
Ocean surges are forecast for Bonita Beach northward to Tampa Bay. Those surges could send sea waves further inland than normal, damaging structures and endangering anyone in their path.
Parts of the Gulf Coast counties Pasco Hernando and Citrus issued mandatory or voluntary evacuation orders on Saturday.
A tropical storm warning is in effect for extreme southern Florida and stretching as far north as the Fort Myers area, which was crushed by Hurricane Ian in 2022.
Governor Ron DeSantis has called up 3,000 National Guard and put most of the state's cities and counties under emergency orders ahead of the expected landfall.
Forecasters expect a large number of Atlantic hurricanes to form in the 2024 season, which began June 1, with four to seven major hurricanes forming out of 25 named storms. That is more than the record-breaking 2005 season that spawned hurricanes Katrina and Rita.
Only one hurricane, Beryl, has formed in the Atlantic so far this year. The earliest Category 5 storm on record, it ravaged the Caribbean and Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula before rolling up the Gulf Coast of Texas as a Category 1 storm, with winds up to 95 mph.
Debby is expected to follow a similar track as the deadly 2022 Hurricane Ian, which killed at least 103 people in Florida and caused billions of dollars in damage as it made its way along the Gulf Coast.
Reporting by Rich McKay in Atlanta; Additional reporting by Chandni Shah; Editing by William Mallard
Últimas notícias
Isenção de Responsabilidade: As entidades do XM Group proporcionam serviço de apenas-execução e acesso à nossa plataforma online de negociação, permitindo a visualização e/ou uso do conteúdo disponível no website ou através deste, o que não se destina a alterar ou a expandir o supracitado. Tal acesso e uso estão sempre sujeitos a: (i) Termos e Condições; (ii) Avisos de Risco; e (iii) Termos de Responsabilidade. Este, é desta forma, fornecido como informação generalizada. Particularmente, por favor esteja ciente que os conteúdos da nossa plataforma online de negociação não constituem solicitação ou oferta para iniciar qualquer transação nos mercados financeiros. Negociar em qualquer mercado financeiro envolve um nível de risco significativo de perda do capital.
Todo o material publicado na nossa plataforma de negociação online tem apenas objetivos educacionais/informativos e não contém — e não deve ser considerado conter — conselhos e recomendações financeiras, de negociação ou fiscalidade de investimentos, registo de preços de negociação, oferta e solicitação de transação em qualquer instrumento financeiro ou promoção financeira não solicitada direcionadas a si.
Qual conteúdo obtido por uma terceira parte, assim como o conteúdo preparado pela XM, tais como, opiniões, pesquisa, análises, preços, outra informação ou links para websites de terceiras partes contidos neste website são prestados "no estado em que se encontram", como um comentário de mercado generalizado e não constitui conselho de investimento. Na medida em que qualquer conteúdo é construído como pesquisa de investimento, deve considerar e aceitar que este não tem como objetivo e nem foi preparado de acordo com os requisitos legais concebidos para promover a independência da pesquisa de investimento, desta forma, deve ser considerado material de marketing sob as leis e regulações relevantes. Por favor, certifique-se que leu e compreendeu a nossa Notificação sobre Pesquisa de Investimento não-independente e o Aviso de Risco, relativos à informação supracitada, os quais podem ser acedidos aqui.
