Florida’s tropical Storm Elsa gains strength
TROPICAL Storm Elsa is lashing the Florida Keys, complicating the search for survivors in the apartment block collapse near Miami and prompting a hurricane watch for the state’s upper Gulf Coast.
In addition to damaging winds and heavy rains, the Miami-based National Hurricane Centre warned of life-threatening storm surges, flooding and isolated tornadoes.
A hurricane watch was issued for a long stretch of coastline, from Egmont Key at the mouth of Tampa Bay to the Steinhatchee
River in Florida’s Big Bend area.
Bands of rain are expected to reach Surfside on Florida’s Atlantic coast, soaking the rubble of Champlain Towers South, which collapsed on June 24, killing at least 32 people and leaving more than 100 missing.
Search and rescue crews have worked through rain, but must pause when lightning threatens, and a garage area in the debris filled with water on Monday, officials said. Elsa’s maximum sustained winds strengthened to 60mph early yesterday.