East Coast braces as Florence could regain hurricane strength

The once powerful Florence has taken a hit, but its life as a major hurricane is likely not over just yet, and it has East Coast residents on the edge of their seats.

Florence could cause dangerous surf and rip currents along parts of the U.S. East Coast this weekend as the storm swirls across the Atlantic, according to forecasters at the National Hurricane Center.

Though weakened to a tropical storm, Florence was expected to regain hurricane strength as it neared Bermuda.

Large swells were likely to start hitting the British island territory in the north Atlantic Ocean as soon as Friday.

The tropical storm is predicted to re-intensify to a Category 3 hurricane by Monday, and odds have increased that it will have direct effects on the East Coast starting between Wednesday and Friday next week, anywhere between Florida and southern New England.

On Friday morning, Tropical Storm Florence was centered about 1,800 miles due east of Miami and tracking toward the west at 8 mph. It has peak sustained winds of 65 mph. “Florence’s weakening appears to have stopped,” the National Hurricane Center wrote in its advisory.

Florence wilted Thursday as it plowed into the subtropical jet stream.

The strong wind shear disrupted the thunderstorms at its core and caused the storm’s peak winds to fall from 130 mph to 70 mph in just 30 hours.

So how could that be bad for the East Coast? Weaker storms are steered by different layers of the atmosphere than stronger storms.

A weak storm is steered more by a shallow low-to-mid-level layer of the atmosphere, while a strong storm is steered by a deep layer of the atmosphere.

As soon as Florence’s structure fell apart Thursday, it turned westward with the low-level trade winds.

Although a direct hit is not inevitable, odds have increased that this storm may have a hard time finding an escape route as it draws closer to the East Coast.

There is still a chance the storm could slow down as it nears the U.S. and meander offshore before turning back out to sea. But it’s not a big chance.

Two low pressure systems off the coast of Africa behind Florence also had high chances of developing into tropical storms, forecasters said.

“Since we are near the peak of hurricane season, this is a good time for everyone who lives in a hurricane-prone area to ensure they have their hurricane plan in place,” hurricane specialist David Zelinsky wrote in a forecast advisory.