Another Major Storm Is Threatening the Florida Coast

by Daniel McCarthy October 05, 2024

Tropical Depression 14 in the Gulf of Mexico from the NHC — Photo: NHC

Yet another storm system, forming in the Gulf of Mexico, could make landfall as a major storm in the coming days, just over a week after Hurricane Helene hit.

The system, currently called Tropical Depression 14 by the National Hurricane Center (NHC), is forming in the southwestern Gulf of Mexico. The NHC says that the storm should intensify quickly as it moves east and north across the Gulf of Mexico towards the Gulf Coast of Florida. It’s more likely than not that the storm will become a tropical storm later on Saturday and a hurricane by early Monday and then approach the west coast of the Florida Peninsula by midweek.

For the moment, the NHC has the center of the storm hitting less of the state’s Big Bend Coast, the section that took the brunt of Helene’s landfall. Still, it’s warning residents in all areas of Florida to have their hurricane plan in place.

Rain will start even before the storm makes landfall—Florida will see “heavy rainfall” in areas starting on Sunday into Monday, well ahead of the storm’s arrival. It’s more than likely that Hurricane and Storm Surge watches will be issued for Florida starting on Sunday.

Aside from Florida and the Florida Keys, the NHC is alerting everyone in the Yucatan peninsula of Mexico, and the northwestern Bahamas, to monitor the system as it continues to form.

As of Saturday afternoon, U.S. airlines have not yet issued any travel waivers for the storm, though that could change quickly. Most airlines are still issuing waivers for the ongoing flooding in Asheville, North Carolina, which is not in this current storm’s path. That city continues to try and recover from Helene’s impact, with the death toll rising to at least 115 over the last 24 hours.

For travel in Asheville, Asheville Regional Airport (AVL) is open and commercial flights are operating. The immediate roads surrounding the airport are clear. The area’s historic Biltmore Estate, which opened in 1895 in the Blue Ridge Mountains, has closed its doors temporarily following the storm.