Arlene May Be Hurricane By Landfall
Hurricane Watch Issued In Fla.; Arlene Winds Hit 60 MPH
POSTED: 11:34 am EDT June 10, 2005
UPDATED: 12:05 pm EDT June 10, 2005
A hurricane watch has been issued from the mouth of the Pearl River to Panama City, Fla. Friday as Tropical Arlene continues to gain strength, according to the National Hurricane Center.
On its current track, the center of Arlene will be approaching the northern coast of the Gulf of Mexico on Saturday. However, most of the weather associated with Arlene will arrive much earlier than the center, according to a report issued Friday.
Some strengthening is forecasted during the next 24 hours and it is possible that Arlene could reach hurricane strength before landfall, the National Hurricane Center said.
Maximum sustained winds are near 60 mph with higher gusts.
Also at 11 a.m., a tropical storm warning was issued for the northern coast of the Gulf of Mexico from Grand Isle, La., to St. Marks, Fla., including Lake Pontchartrain.
A tropical storm warning means that tropical storm conditions are expected within the warning area within the next 24 hours. A hurricane watch means that hurricane conditions are possible within the watch area.
The poorly-defined center of Arlene has reformed a little north of the previous position, according to the National Hurricane Center.
The downpour that landed on Havana and the rest of western Cuba as Arlene passed the island's westernmost tip early Friday was welcome relief from the island's severe drought.
Flooding was possible because it could drop 5 inches of rain or more, meteorologists said, and some schools were closed, but there were no immediate reports of damage.
It could cause tornados in southwestern Florida and the Florida Keys, meteorologists said. Beach erosion was also possible.
"This is going to be a major rainfall event before and ahead of the storm," said Trisha Wallace, a hurricane center meteorologist.
At 11 a.m. EDT, Arlene's poorly defined center was about 470 miles south-southeast of Pensacola. The storm was moving north at about 13 mph, the National Hurricane Center in Miami said. Wind and rain extended 150 miles to the north and east from the storm's center.
Ahead of the storm, steady rainfall and squalls began to hit Florida on Thursday. A Russian exchange student was pulled from the rough waves off Miami Beach without a pulse early Friday, fire department spokesman Javier Otero said. She was brought to a hospital without a pulse, but Otero didn't immediately know if she died.
The Panhandle was battered last year by Ivan, one of the four hurricanes to strike Florida in the space of a few weeks.
State meteorologist Ben Nelson warned coastal residents that flooding patterns could be different now "because the dunes, the offshore structures, have been changed around by Ivan."
Hurricane season began June 1 and ends Nov. 30.
In addition to Ivan, Florida was struck by Charley, Frances and Jeanne. The storms caused about 130 deaths in the United States and are blamed for $22 billion in insured damage.
Effects On Central Florida?
This weekend, parts of Central Florida can expect three more rain days with winds reaching 25 mph at times, according to Local 6 meteorologist Tom Sorrells.
"Anytime you throw a big low over here like this one, you run the risk of tornadoes developing during the day," Sorrells said.
Watch Local 6 Weather with Tom Sorrells, Michele Cimino and Larry Mowry for more on this story.
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