WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — A cluster of thunderstorms near the Yucatan Peninsula could strengthen into a tropical depression or storm over the coming days and bring heavy rain to South Florida next week.
The National Hurricane Center said the system, Invest 93L, has a 40% chance of development over the next two days and 80% chance over the next seven days.
"The long-range models bring it in around the Panhandle on Wednesday," WPTV First Alert Weather chief meteorologist Steve Weagle said.
Invest 93L will likely become a depression late this weekend as it moves north into the eastern Gulf of Mexico.
"This one has the potential of affecting us as we head into the next couple of days," WPTV First Alert Weather meteorologist Steve Villanueva said.
If the tropical system moves just 50 miles to the east, it could bring some "big showers and storms" to South Florida, Weagle said.
TRACKING THE TROPICS: Hurricane Center | Hurricane Guide
Villanueva said the area of disturbed weather will move north into the Gulf of Mexico by Monday and may affect areas from the Panhandle to the Big Bend of Florida.
"The European computer model, especially, does spin up a tropical system and then takes it up toward the Big Bend of Florida," Villanueva said.
Villanueva said next week could be "quite stormy here in South Florida," with our forecast calling for scattered thunderstorms and a 70% chance of rain on Tuesday, 60% on Wednesday, and 60% on Thursday.
"Rainfall potential, most of it for the Gulf coast, since that's where the bulk of the moisture will be. But here in South Florida, we could pick up some good rain starting the middle of next week," Villanueva said.
Elsewhere in the tropics, Tropical Storm Franklin is located north of Hispaniola and is expected to strengthen into a hurricane as it lifts farther north, staying just to the west of Bermuda.
"It could become a Category 2 over the next couple of days with winds of 110 mph. But then after that, it races up into the north Atlantic and dissipates," Villanueva said.
Meanwhile, the remnants of Tropical Storm Emily, located 1,000 miles east-southeast of Bermuda, could restrengthen as it moves north over the central Atlantic.
Finally, a wave in the central Atlantic has a 20% chance of development over the next two days and 50% chance over the next seven days, but won't affect South Florida, according to Villanueva.
