Florida is on alert as Tropical Storm Milton forms in the Gulf just days after Hurricane Helene

CNN
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Less than 10 days after Hurricane Helene made landfall in Florida, the state is bracing for another potentially devastating blow from a hurricane in the Gulf of Mexico.

Tropical Storm Milton formed in the western Gulf on Saturday morning, just hours after becoming a tropical depression, the National Hurricane Center said in a special warning. The 13th named storm, which has the letter M, is progressing – it typically doesn’t appear until October 25th.

Milton is expected to strengthen next week, causing life-threatening impacts on portions of Florida’s west coast.

The storm is expected to “intensify rapidly as it moves east-northeast across the Gulf of Mexico, reaching or near strong hurricane strength when it approaches the west coast of the Florida Peninsula midweek “said the hurricane center. As of Saturday afternoon, it is expected to make landfall in Florida as at least a Category 2 hurricane.

Hurricane and storm surge warnings are expected to be issued for parts of Florida’s coast on Sunday – dangerous storm surge is expected for some areas that were just affected by Helene.

“Regardless of developments, locally heavy rainfall could occur over the next day or two in parts of Mexico and much of Florida from the end of this weekend into the middle of next week,” the NHC said.

The storm threat comes after Helene made a Category 4 landfall in Florida’s Big Bend on September 26, leaving a 500-mile path of destruction with catastrophic flooding, damaging winds and power outages. Local authorities have reported more than 200 deaths in six states and fear the number could rise.

Helene was one of the largest storms the Gulf of Mexico has experienced in the last century.

The latest storm forecast calls for widespread rainfall amounts of 4 to 6 inches across nearly the entire length of the state, from Gainesville down to Key West, with isolated higher amounts of up to 10 inches possible through Thursday. Tampa has already received more than 20 inches of rain above normal this year. Cities like Melbourne, Jacksonville, Naples and Fort Myers all have more than a foot of excess rainfall so far this year.

There is also an increasing risk of a storm surge for the western Florida peninsula late Tuesday or Wednesday. Damaging winds, tornadoes and water spouts are also possible next week.

The hurricane center is warning people in Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula, the Florida Peninsula, the Florida Keys and the Bahamas to closely monitor this system for any impacts this weekend and early next week.

CNN meteorologist Elisa Raffa contributed to this report.