A strong weather system in the Gulf of Mexico officially became the sixth named storm of the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season on Monday.
Tropical Storm Francine is churning off the eastern coast of Mexico and is forecast to become a hurricane before it reaches the Louisiana coast on Wednesday.
Monday night the storm was moving north-northwest at about 7mph. Maximum sustained winds were about 65mph, still short of the 74mph threshold for a hurricane.
In anticipation of the storm, hurricane and storm surge watches have been issued for the area.
On Monday night a Tropical Storm Warning was in effect for southern Texas from Port Mansfield south to the Mouth of the Rio Grande and in Mexico from the Rio Grande south to La Pesca.
A Hurricane Warning was in effect for the Louisiana coast from Sabine Pass eastward to Morgan City. Hurricane conditions were expected in the area by Wednesday.
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By Thursday, Francine was forecast to bring between four to eight inches of rain across northeast Mexico, the Texas coast and in southern Louisiana and southern Mississippi. Isolated totals of 12 inches were possible in places.
Meanwhile, forecasters are also tracking two other storm systems in the Atlantic that are likely to strengthen. However, they are both located several hundred of miles east of the U.S. so it's still too early to tell whether they pose a potential threat.
Nonetheless, the tropics are getting more active ahead of what is typically the peak of hurricane season on Sept. 10.
NOAA released updated projections last month, as the agency expects a more active than usual season. The agency forecasts there will be 17-24 named tropical storms in 2024, with 8-13 of them becoming hurricanes in 2024.
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