Showers and Storms Here, Hurricane Francine on the Move

Wednesday features a mix of sun, clouds, and a few morning storms in the East Coast metro area, but plenty of storms will develop in the afternoon, followed by a few showers in the evening.  The Gulf Coast will be mostly sunny in the morning, but look for showers and storms in the afternoon and evening.  An elevated risk of dangerous rip currents remains along the Palm Beach County coast.  Highs on Wednesday will be in the low 90s — but it will feel at least 10 degrees hotter, so stay hydrated and out of the sun.

Thursday will bring clouds, showers, and storms with just a bit of sun at times.  Thursday’s highs will be in the low 90s.

Friday will feature clouds, showers, and storms again in the East Coast metro area.  The Gulf Coast will see a mix of sun and clouds in the morning, with showers and storms developing in the afternoon and tapering off in the evening.  Friday’s highs will be in the low 90s.

Saturday will see mostly sunny skies alternating with plenty of showers and storms.  Saturday’s highs will be in the low 90s.

Sunday’s forecast calls for a mix of sun, clouds, showers, and some storms on the mainland.  Look for clouds and showers in the Keys.  Highs on Sunday will be near 90 degrees in the East Coast metro area and the Keys and in the low 90s along the Gulf Coast.

In the tropics, Francine is now a hurricane.   At 8 pm Tuesday, Francine had maximum sustained winds of 75 miles per hour and was moving northeast at 10 miles per hour.  At that time, Francine was 350 miles southwest of Morgan City, Louisiana.  There’s a hurricane warning for the Louisiana coast from Sabine Pass to Grand Isle, and there’s a tropical storm warning from High Island, Texas to Sabine Pass and from Grand Isle, Louisiana to the Alabama/Florida border. The tropical storm warning includes New Orleans.  Landfall is expected on the Louisiana coast on Wednesday afternoon, but conditions will deteriorate much earlier.

Elsewhere, the area of low pressure in the central Atlantic has been struggling and now has a low chance of becoming a depression in the next couple of days.  But the trough of low pressure in the eastern Atlantic has a high chance of developing by the weekend as it moves to the west-northwest.