Fred could bring storm surge of up to 3 feet in Florida Panhandle

Tropical Storm Fred regained its strength Sunday as it continued on a path toward the western Florida Panhandle, where it could make landfall Monday afternoon or night, forecasters said.

Fred could bring storm surge of 1 to 3 feet in the Panhandle, particularly along the Florida-Alabama border to Indian Pass. The deepest water was expected near and to the east of wherever Fred makes landfall.

“Wind shear should prevent Fred from intensifying too quickly over the warm Gulf waters,” according to the Weather Channel.

The Florida Keys and southern Florida could see 3 to 5 inches of rain from the storm.

Rain totals of 4 to 8 inches — with maximum amounts of up to 1 foot — were forecast in Florida’s Big Bend and Panhandle regions, forecasters said.

A storm surge warning was in effect for the coast of the Florida Panhandle from Indian Pass to Yankeetown, a tropical storm warning was in effect from Navarre to the Wakulla-Jefferson County line and a tropical storm watch was in effect from the Alabama-Florida border to Navarre.

There was also a chance that tornadoes could form on Florida’s west coast and the coastal Panhandle Sunday into early Monday, forecasters said.

A tropical storm watch remained in effect Sunday from the Alabama-Florida border to Ochlockonee, Fla.

As of 5 p.m., Fred was about 195 miles west-southwest of Tampa and 235 miles south of Panama City with maximum sustained winds at 45 mph, up from 40 mph as of 2 p.m. Its speed decreased slightly to 10 mph as it moved north-northwest.

Fred’s tropical stormforce winds were extending up to 80 miles from its center, according to the National Hurricane Center.

Fred became the sixth named storm of the season when it first formed late Tuesday south of Puerto Rico. It was the first named storm to form in the Atlantic since Hurricane Elsa moved through the Gulf of Mexico in early July.

More than 20 Florida counties were under a state of emergency due to Tropical Storm Fred.

Forecasters were also monitoring Tropical Storm Grace, which formed Saturday. It seemed to be on a path somewhat similar to Fred.

The next storm name is Henri.

Hurricane season’s busiest period, runs from mid-August, reaches a peak around Sept. 10 and winds down in October.

Forecasters expect this to be an above-average hurricane season, with NOAA predicting up to 10 hurricanes by the time the season ends Nov. 30.