Hurricane Ian Barrels Toward Florida, NYC Braces For Heavy Rain

NEW YORK CITY — Hurricane Ian could take a turn toward New York City after the powerful storm batters Florida with ferocious winds and pounding rain, according to forecasters.

But New Yorkers can rest easy, for now: heavy, tropical rainfall likely will be the main impact if Ian's remnants travel far up the East Coast, AccuWeather reported.

See Patch's full coverage of Hurricane Ian.

Ian's path is still uncertain, but its remnants could pass south of New York by Monday next week, said Bill Goodman, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service.

"The timing is a bit uncertain," he said.

The hurricane, after battering Cuba, neared Category 5 strength early Wednesday, just hours before it is expected to make landfall, AccuWeather reported.

Meteorologists expect life-threatening flooding, 155-mph winds and potentially "catastrophic" impacts to parts of Florida, according to AccuWeather.

"There is the potential for Ian to hit as the strongest hurricane on record for the southwestern to west-central part of the Florida Gulf coast," said Dan Kottlowski, an AccuWeather hurricane expert.

Ian will weaken as it moves north, but meteorologists expect heavy rain from its remnants could hit between Georgia to Virginia starting Friday, according to AccuWeather.

Impacts to New York and other states farther north will depend on Ian's path through the weekend, AccuWeather reported.

"There will be a lot of dry air in the region prior to Ian's arrival, and it's possible this could minimize the amount of rain the area receives or even steer Ian off the mid-Atlantic coast," the report states.

Rain will enter New York City's forecast starting Saturday, but that likely won't be from Ian.

A separate warm front moving up the coast could bring rainfall Saturday into Sunday, before Ian's remnants are expected to hit, Goodman said.

"There could be two different rounds of precipitation," he said.

Patch writer Lisa Finn contributed to this report.