While Francine continues to bring rain to the southeastern United States, an approaching storm off the coast could bring additional rain and flooding to the region in the next few days.
Storm expected to bring heavy rain to North Carolina and Virginia
A tropical rainstorm that meteorologists say could strengthen into a named storm this weekend is on its way toward the Mid-Atlantic.
While the National Hurricane Center was tracking Tropical Storm Gordon on Saturday, it was also monitoring a disturbance off the coast of the southeastern United States that could bring heavy rains and flash flooding to the Carolinas and Mid-Atlantic early next week.
Tropical Storm Gordon is expected to weaken as it slowly moves west-northwestward across the central tropical Atlantic Ocean over the next few days, the center said. Gordon is currently located about 1,140 miles (1,835 kilometers) west-northwest of the Cape Verde Islands, which lie off the west coast of Africa. It is moving at about 9 mph (14 kph) with maximum sustained winds of 45 mph (72 kph).
Gordon is expected to develop into a low-pressure system by early Sunday and could gradually strengthen by the middle of next week. The storm is expected to remain at sea for at least the next week and pose no threat to land, AccuWeather meteorologists said.
The “tropical wind and rain storm” developing off the coast of the southeastern U.S. could develop into a tropical disturbance or tropical storm early next week and bring flooding, surf backwash and beach erosion from northeast Florida to the Delmarva Peninsula into next week, according to AccuWeather.
Rainfall from this storm could occur at the same time as that of the storm previously known as Hurricane Francine, which is now classified as a “post-tropical” storm by the National Weather Service.
According to the service, Francine is expected to continue bringing heavy rain and flash flooding to the southeastern U.S. through Sunday. Flash flood warnings are in effect for parts of Arkansas, Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama and Georgia, where rain is expected to continue Saturday and Sunday.
Francine lands in Louisiana: View photos and videos of impact and damage
NHC tracking system off the southeast coast of the USA, three tropical waves
The system off the coast of the southeastern United States could develop into a subtropical or tropical depression or storm as it moves northwest, driven by the warm waters of the Gulf Stream, the National Hurricane Center said. The NHC estimates the probability of its formation at 30% in the next 48 hours and 50% in the next seven days.
Showers and thunderstorms are expected in Florida, the Carolinas and the southern Mid-Atlantic through early next week, the NWS said Saturday. As the low pressure system moves north along the East Coast, it will bring heavy rains and the threat of flash flooding to parts of the Carolinas and the Mid-Atlantic early next week, the agency said.
The hurricane center is also monitoring three tropical waves.
- A tropical wave in the Eastern Atlantic
- A tropical wave moves over the Lesser Antilles
- A tropical wave in the central Caribbean near western Venezuela
According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, a tropical wave can lead to the formation of a tropical cyclone, which in turn can develop into a tropical storm or hurricane.
Storm tracker for the Atlantic
Spaghetti models of Tropical Storm Gordon
Contributors: Doyle Rice, Kim Luciani and Cheryl McCloud, USA TODAY Network.
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