Tropical disturbance soaks Florida as Beta nears Texas

Rainy and windy weather conditions in South Florida are coming from a concentrated area of showers and thunderstorms rolling over southeastern Florida, the central Bahamas and the Straits of Florida.

The disturbance is forecast to pass by South Florida, loop over Cuba and then come back up to at least the Florida Keys between Thursday and Saturday, according to the National Hurricane Center. The system could start to develop on Thursday or Friday as it approaches the Keys and South Florida.

The disturbance will keep drenching South Florida with heavy rains and will do the same to western Cuba today and Wednesday.

Meanwhile, Tropical Storm Beta inched closer to the Texas coast, where it is expected to make landfall north of Corpus Christi, forecasters say. Tropical storm-force wind gusts and heavy rains started creeping across the central Texas coastal area Monday afternoon.

On its latest forecast track, the center of Beta was expected to move inland over the central Texas coast overnight, according to the latest advisory from the National Hurricane Center. Forecasters expect the small storm to stall along the coast or just inland between 12 and 24 hours, dumping significant amounts of rain along the Texas and Louisiana coasts for several days.

In addition to posing a flood threat for Texas, Beta could bring up to five inches of rain to New Orleans. Up to 8 inches is forecast in Morgan City, La., according to the Weather Channel.

Winds of 40 to 50 mph will be felt along coastal Texas and Louisiana well ahead of landfall, the

Weather Channel reported.

Beta is no longer forecast to become a hurricane.

Beta formed in the Gulf of Mexico on Friday, right after Tropical Storm Wilfred and Subtropical Storm Alpha in the Atlantic, bringing the hyperactive 2020 hurricane season up to 23 named storms.

It’s just the second time in history that forecasters have had to turn to the Greek alphabet for storm names.

As of 8 p.m. Monday, Beta was 20 miles southeast of Port O’Connor, Texas. It had maximum sustained winds of 45 mph and was inching northwest at 5 mph.

A tropical storm warning was issued from south of Port Aransas, Texas, to Morgan City, La. A tropical storm watch was discontinued from Baffin Bay to Port Aransas.

A storm surge warning extends from Port Aransas to Rockefeller Wildlife Refuge, La.

Tropical storm-force winds extended outward up to 175 miles as of 8 p.m. Monday.

Hurricane Teddy skirted Bermuda’s eastern side on Monday, bringing an increasing risk of strong winds, storm surge and heavy rainfall, the National Hurricane Center said.

After passing Bermuda, the storm started to get larger and stronger. Lifethreatening rip currents are expected along western Atlantic beaches for the next few days, the hurricane center said.

A tropical storm watch has also been issued for the coast of Nova Scotia, from Lower East Pubnico to Canso, in Canada. A tropical storm warning is in effect for Nova Scotia to Meat Cove.

Teddy was expected to approach Nova Scotia late today or Wednesday.

At 8 p.m. Monday, Teddy was about 250 miles northeast of Bermuda. Teddy picked up speed and is traveling north at 36 mph with maximum sustained winds of 90 mph.

Teddy’s hurricane-force winds extend 80 miles from the center and its tropical storm-force winds extend outward up to 275 miles.

“Teddy is a large hurricane,” the National Hurricane Center said in the 5 a.m. Monday public advisory.

Wilfred, which had been a tropical depression about 1,030 miles east of the Lesser Antilles, had degenerated into a trough of low pressure on Sunday night. Alpha had dissipated completely late Saturday.

After Beta, the next storms will be Gamma and Delta and Epsilon.

This has only ever happened once before — during the record-shattering 2005 hurricane season that produced Hurricanes Katrina and Wilma. In that year, Tropical Storm Zeta formed on Dec. 30, the 28th named storm.

Hurricane season runs from June 1-Nov. 30. So far this season, there have been eight hurricanes and 23 tropical storms.

Laura was the season’s first major hurricane, making landfall in Cameron, La., as a Category 4 on Aug. 27. Hanna, Isaias and Marco were Category 1 hurricanes that made landfall in Padre Island, Texas; Ocean Isle Beach, N.C.; and at the mouth of the Mississippi River. Hurricane Nana impacted Central America.

The tropical weather experts at Colorado State University predicted that 2020 could possibly be the second-busiest season on record, behind only 2005, the year that produced Katrina and Wilma. In August, the federal government issued an updated forecast for the season, predicting as many as 25 storms, which is more than the agency has ever forecast.