Miami Weather: Flood Watch In Effect Through Friday
MIAMI (CBSMiami) – It was a stormy start across much of South Florida early Thursday morning, however the stronger storms moved offshore and over the Atlantic waters.
There were some lingering showers across parts of Broward County by the morning rush as most of Miami-Dade County got a bit of a break from the wet weather. Storms remain across the lower Keys Thursday morning.
Waves of rain will move through the area with another one expected late afternoon and early evening. The showers and storms develop to the south and move north. There will be brief downpours as these storms move through but even a little rain may lead to more flooding.
Due to all the rain that fell Wednesday and the rain expected Thursday and Friday, a Flood Watch is in effect through Friday morning. The ground is saturated and any additional rainfall will lead to more flooding.
Drivers should avoid flooded roads where you can't detect the depth of the water.
Due to the clouds and storms, highs will be in the low to mid 80s. Plenty of moisture will keep the rain chance high Friday with the potential for scattered storms and heavy downpours. Highs will remain in the low to mid 80s.
Heading into the weekend, it will remain unsettled and the rain chance will depend on what happens with Tropical Storm Cristobal. For now, the scattered storms could become more widespread depending on how much moisture is over the area.
Tropical Storm Cristobal is moving slowly southeastward over southern Mexico and continues to produce heavy rain and life-threatening flooding. Cristobal became a Tropical Depression Thursday morning but is still producing heavy rain leading to flash flooding across the Yucatan Peninsula. The storm is forecast to strengthen back into a Tropical Storm this weekend once it moves into the very warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico.
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Models forecast Cristobal will move Northward and threaten the Gulf coast states late Sunday into Monday. The Hurricane Center forecast track shows the center of Cristobal possibly making landfall somewhere along the Louisiana or Texas coastline late Sunday into Monday.
There is still a lot of uncertainty regarding the exact location and timing. Hence, everyone from Texas to the Florida Panhandle needs to monitor this closely and be prepared. There is the threat of storm surge, heavy rain, flooding and gusty winds along the Gulf coast states.
