Florida braces for tropical storm 'Debby', state of emergency imposed

A tropical storm warning has been issued and a state of emergency declared in parts of Florida ahead of Tropical Storm Debby, which is expected to bring heavy, flooding rainfall to the state and the southeast United States starting this weekend.

The system, with 30 mph winds, has been designated Potential Tropical Cyclone Four by the National Hurricane Center as it develops over parts of Cuba and the southern Bahamas.

Tropical storm watches and warnings were issued Friday morning for the west coast of Florida as the developing system threatens to drench much of the state over the weekend.

The main impact from the storm, which will be named Tropical Storm Debby, is expected to be heavy rainfall that "may result in flash and urban flooding across portions of Florida and the Southeast this weekend through Wednesday morning," according to the National Hurricane Center. Isolated river flooding is also possible.

Other impacts include tropical-storm-force winds and a 1-3 foot storm surge in some areas, the NHC warned.

The tropical wave, dubbed Potential Tropical Cyclone Four, is expected to move near or over Cuba on Friday and emerge over the Straits of Florida on Friday night or Saturday.

It is forecast to become a tropical depression overnight and then Tropical Storm Debby on Saturday. A system becomes a named tropical storm when sustained winds reach 39 mph, and a hurricane when winds reach 74 mph.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Hurricane Hunter aircraft is scheduled to investigate the system later on Friday if necessary.

State of Emergency in Florida

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis declared a state of emergency for 54 of the state's 67 counties in anticipation of what could be the first major storm of the hurricane season, with potential weeklong river flooding, the Pensacola News Journal reported.

As the system moves through the eastern Gulf of Mexico this weekend, it has the potential to evolve quickly, according to AccuWeather. "While moving over the warm waters of the eastern Gulf, the tropical rainstorm could gain strength quickly since the atmosphere will be more moist and disruptive breezes, known as wind shear, will be low," said AccuWeather meteorologist Alex Sosnowski in an online post.

University of Miami meteorologist Brian McNoldy noted on his blog that "due to extremely warm water temperatures in the northeast Gulf, the possibility of rapid intensification can't be ignored."

Rapid intensification is a process where a storm undergoes accelerated growth, typically defined as a tropical cyclone intensifying by at least 35 mph within 24 hours.

"Rapid intensification occurs when a tropical storm or hurricane encounters an extremely conducive environment," said Colorado State University hurricane researcher Phil Klotzbach. "This environment consists of very warm water, low vertical wind shear, and high levels of midlevel moisture."

As of Friday afternoon, the NHC forecasts Debby's highest wind speed to be 65 mph, below the 74 mph needed for hurricane status.