Tropical Disturbance May Bring Heavy Rain to Florida

TAMPA, FL — Tampa Bay area residents in flood prone areas may want to keep an eye on water levels over the next few days as a tropical disturbance is expected to make its way across the state.

According to the National Hurricane Center, the system was located near the Bahamas Monday morning. It was moving west-northwest at roughly 10 to 15 mph, forecasters said. While heavy rainfall is associated with the system, closed surface circulation that goes along with tropical depressions, storms and hurricanes has not been seen.

The system has been given only a 10 percent chance of developing more over the next 48 hours with forecasters saying conditions just don’t appear conducive. Even so, they’re warning the system is dumping locally heavy rainfall as it passes. It's expected to make its way to Florida on Tuesday.

Forecasters at the National Weather Service’s Ruskin office say there’s about a 70 percent chance of thunderstorms during the daytime hours Tuesday. Those chances fall to about 60 percent in the overnight hours. Strong rain chances remain in the cards heading into Wednesday, as well.

Minor river flooding is expected to continue along several Tampa Bay area bodies of water this week. Cypress Creek at Worthington Gardens, Myakka River at Myakka River State Park and the Peace River at Arcadia are all at minor flood stage, the weather service wrote in Monday’s Hazardous Weather Outlook report.

“Residents living along these rivers should remain aware of water levels and be ready to move to higher ground should additional flooding be observed,” the report said.

Meanwhile, another disturbance located in the Atlantic Ocean has hurricane center forecasters’ attention. That system was located about 800 miles east-northeast of the northern Leeward Islands Monday morning. The system is becoming better defined, forecasters say and is already kicking up gale force winds. The system is expected to develop into a tropical storm soon and has been given a 90 percent chance of doing so over the next 48 hours.

Should the system develop enough to earn a name, it would be called Ian. On its current projected path, the storm poses no immediate threat to the United States.

The Atlantic Hurricane Season peaks each year between mid-August and mid-October. While the season technically runs June 1 through Nov. 30, many of the major storms on record have occurred during the traditional eight-week peak.

To find out more about hurricane season and storm preparation in the Tampa Bay area, read these related Patch stories:

• Atlantic Hurricane Season 2016's Peak is Now
• Hurricane Season 2016: Where To Find Local Information
• 2016 Atlantic Hurricane Season Forecast Released
• Hurricane Season: How to Prepare
• 2016 Hurricane Names: Is Yours On the List?
• Tampa Bay 'Ripe for Disaster,' Hurricane Experts Say

To keep up with storm activity as the season develops, bookmark theNational Hurricane Center’s website and keep an eye on your hometown Patch site for local information.

Image courtesy of the National Hurricane Center