Florida Faces the Risk of Rain and Thunderstorms
A big storm is coming to the southern part of the United States and parts of Florida this weekend, bringing heavy rain and possibly severe weather, warn AccuWeather meteorologists.
Usually, winter is dry in Florida, and rain mostly comes from thunderstorms or tropical activity in late spring through autumn. However, sometimes, non-tropical storms with lots of rain and severe weather happen during winter, and that might be the case this weekend.
The best time for outdoor activities is until Saturday evening when a high-pressure area over the Southeastern states will bring dry weather. Temperatures will be close to the usual for this time, for instance, in Orlando, highs will be in the low 70s, and nighttime lows in the low 50s. In Miami, highs are usually in the mid-70s with overnight lows in the low 60s.
The storm, likely to bring heavy rain and maybe severe thunderstorms, will impact areas from Texas to the central Gulf Coast from Friday night to Saturday night. Though a massive amount of rain is not expected in Florida, it might fall in a short time, causing flooding in urban and low-lying areas.
The rain and storms in Florida are expected from late Saturday night to Sunday afternoon. The southern half of the Florida Peninsula has the highest chance of violent thunderstorms with high winds. While there’s a possibility of tornadoes and waterspouts, the overall risk of severe weather is currently low. Plans for a beach day, theme parks, or golf on Sunday might be affected, and there could be airline delays.
AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Dan Pydynowski suggests that dry air may stop the severe weather threat abruptly on Sunday afternoon, and parts of the peninsula might see some sunshine later in the day. However, the panhandle and northeastern counties may continue to have clouds, showers, and occasional thunderstorms into Sunday evening.
Since November 1, much of Florida has seen more rain than usual. As of February 3, Tampa received 9.56 inches of rain, which is 145% of the historical average. Miami had 14.10 inches, or 180% of the historical average, and Melbourne, Florida, had 15.77 inches, nearly 210% of average.
The upcoming storm is expected to bring about 0.50 to 1 inch of rain generally, but some areas might get 2-3 inches where thunderstorms last for a few hours. Showers will continue moving south across the state on Monday, followed by a dry spell for most of the next week.
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