Elsa intensifies as it turns toward Florida coast on track for Wednesday landfall
Hurricane warnings were in effect Tuesday for the west coast of Florida as Tropical Storm Elsa strengthened and forecasters feared it could grow into a hurricane by the time it makes landfall around midnight somewhere north of Tampa Bay.
Elsa already had sustained winds of 70 mph as of 1:45 p.m. with higher gusts, according to the National Hurricane Center.
That’s just 5 mph below Category 1 hurricane strength, which is strong enough to topple trees, send streets signs flying and damage unanchored mobile homes.
Many people in counties like Hernando and Citrus, which are home to lots of retirees from the north, live in mobile homes.
Farther south, Pinellas and Hillsborough county officials were already breaking out the sandbags as residents in flood-prone sections of St. Petersburg and Tampa braced for expected storm surges.
Hurricane watches for the western coast of Florida during the month of July are rare. Going back to 2008, there is no other instance of the National Weather Service in Tampa Bay issuing a hurricane watch in July.
But by sunrise Tuesday, Elsa was battering the Florida Keys with tropical storm-force winds and torrential rainfall. Some of the highest wind gusts clocked included 62 mph in Key West and 64 mph in Sand Key.
By midmorning, Elsa was a 60 mph tropical storm and showing signs of strengthening as it passed just west of Key West.
Hurricane hunters continued to keep tabs on the growing storm. But one of the missions out of Keesler Air Force Base in Biloxi, Mississippi, was delayed by flash flood warning and lightning in the area.
A tropical storm watch was also added Tuesday morning for portions of the Georgia and South Carolina coasts, including Savannah and Charleston.
Storm surge warnings remained in effect for parts of the Florida coast, including Tampa Bay.
After making landfall, Elsa was expected to weaken as it moves inland but will bring strong winds and heavy rain to parts of Georgia, the Carolinas and Virginia.
Peak storm surge was forecast to be 3 to 5 feet above normally dry ground, including Tampa Bay. Elsewhere up and down the west coast of Florida, 1 to 3 feet to 2 to 4 feet were also possible.
Four to 6 inches of rainfall was expected to drench a wide swath of the region stretching across Florida, Georgia and South Carolina, with as much as 8 inches of rain possible in some isolated areas.
Parts of North Carolina and Virginia could also get up to 5 inches of rain, forecasters said.
And flood watches had already issued through Thursday ahead of the downpour for the 12 million people who live into the areas most likely to be deluged.
Tornadoes were also possible across nearly the entire state of Florida on Tuesday associated with Elsa.
A meteorological coincidence: The last tropical storm to make landfall on the west coast of Florida was Eta last November. Elsa is following a similar track and also starts with the letter E.
