It’s a stormy Labor Day throughout South Florida, and our entire area is under a flood watch until at least 11 pm Monday night. The big story is heavy rains and gusty winds (and even the possibility of an isolated tornado) from the system that is expected to become a tropical depression or tropical storm at any time. Greatest concentration of rainfall will be from the early morning hours to late afternoon in the east coast metro areas and from midday into the evening along the Gulf coast. We’ll also see rough seas and a high risk of rip currents at the Atlantic beaches. Clouds and rain will keep highs in the mid 80s on Monday.
Potential Tropical Cyclone # 7 was near the Florida Straits early Monday. At 5 am, it was located near 24.5 North, 80.2 West, or about 60 miles from Marathon in the Keys. It was moving west-northwest at 16 miles per hour and had maximum sustained winds of 30 miles per hour. A tropical storm warning is now in effect from the Alabama-Florida border to just east of Morgan City, Louisiana. A landfall in that area is forecast on Tuesday.
Elsewhere in the busy tropics, Tropical Storm Florence was located near 18.0 North, 37.5 West and was moving west-northwest at 16 miles per hour. Maximum sustained winds were 60 miles per hour. And another wave has emerged off the African coast and has a low chance of development during the workweek as it moves westward.After all that, our weather for the rest of the week will return to a more typical September pattern. Tropical moisture will linger on Tuesday, so look for passing showers and storms as the sun peeks through. Tuesday’s highs will be mostly in the upper 80s.
Wednesday will feature a few early east coast showers, sun and clouds, and afternoon showers and storms in spots. Wednesday’s highs will be near 90 degrees.
Thursday will bring more of the same — sun, clouds, showers at times, and a few storms. Thursday’s highs will be near 90 degrees.
More moisture moves in on Friday, so we’ll see more widespread showers and storms. Highs on Friday will be in the upper 80s.
