Sunday update: Tropical depression forecast to become Gulf hurricane. Here’s the forecast.

Justin Mitchell
·2 min read

Tropical Depression 10 has formed in the Yucatan Peninsula and is expected to become a hurricane on Tuesday after the system enters the Gulf of Mexico.

The system currently has winds of 35 mph and is sitting between eastern Mexico and western Cuba, the National Hurricane Center in Miami said Sunday morning.

The 7 a.m. Sunday “cone of uncertainty” track was released by the NHC and shows the disturbance sitting in the near-same spot until Monday, when it will eventually move north into the Gulf and begin strengthening.

Tropical Depression 10 has formed near the Gulf of Mexico
Tropical Depression 10 has formed near the Gulf of Mexico

The next name named storm will be Idalia.

The NHC predicts the storm will be a hurricane by 1 p.m. Tuesday, and is currently projected to make landfall Wednesday somewhere along the Florida panhandle.

Here’s what Southeastern U.S. states can expect over the next five days, according to the NHC forecast.

State of emergency issued for Florida

While the exact location is not known, landfall is expected in Florida, with dozens of counties in the Sunshine State’s Panhandle and Gulf Coast under a state of emergency. It covers 33 counties, including the counties that are home to Panama City, Tampa, Bradenton and Tallahassee.

There is potential for heavy rainfall, dangerous storm surge and strong winds for the Panhandle and Gulf Coast by the middle of next week, the NHC said.

Residents should stay weather alert and monitor the system over the weekend.

What about the Mississippi Coast and New Orleans?

The Mississippi Coast, including cities of Biloxi, Gulfport, Bay St. Louis and Ocean Springs, are outside of the NHC’s “cone of uncertainty.” The New Orleans metro and Alabama coast are also not in the forecast track as of 7 a.m. Saturday.

What to expect in Georgia, NC and SC

Heavy rainfall is expected across a large swath of the U.S. Southeast late next week as the storm moves inland. The precipitation could affect all of Florida and parts of Georgia, North Carolina and South Carolina, the NHC says.

Keep up with the latest updates at hurricanes.gov.