Published on November 15, 2024 at 11:30 am
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The threat of Tropical Storm Sara appeared to dissipate in Florida on Friday, but the storm’s remnants could bring heavy rain next week.
Sara was hugging the coast of Honduras on Friday and slowly moving westward toward Belize.
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Meteorologist Megan Borowski from the Florida Public Radio Emergency Network said the storm will remain in the vicinity of Central America and the Yucatan peninsula through the weekend.
“Although Sara isn’t strong, it is going to produce heavy rains over the coast of Honduras over the next several days, and that’s thanks in part to its very slow forward motion,” Borowski said. “We do expect the system to track into the Yucatan peninsula early next week, and it’ll weaken into a tropical depression or remnant low if it does indeed follow that forecast track.”
By the middle of the week, the remnants of Sara should get picked up by steering winds and dragged northeastward through the Gulf, Borowski said. The forecast is uncertain this far out, but the remnants of the storm could produce heavy rain for parts of Florida by the middle to end of next week, she said.
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Sara expected to weaken
The National Hurricane Center said Sara was 175 miles east-southeast of Belize City at 10 a.m. Friday with maximum sustained winds of 50 mph.
The Hurricane Center predicted Sara would weaken quickly when it reaches the Yucatan. “What remains of the system when it emerges into the Bay of Campeche in the Gulf of Mexico is not very favorable for redevelopment,” the Hurricane Center said.
Instead, a strong cold front is expected to descend on Florida next week and absorb moisture from Sara.
The National Weather Service in Jacksonville says moisture will begin to build Tuesday night into Wednesday. Daytime temperatures at the beginning of the week will be in the upper 70s to low 80s, then cool into the 60s by the end of the week, the Weather Service says.
Borowski said details about rain intensity and timing for next week are still unknown. They should become more clear early next week.
Randy comes to Jacksonville from the South Florida Sun-Sentinel, where as metro editor, he led investigative coverage of the Parkland school shooting that won the 2019 Pulitzer Prize for public service. He has spent more than 40 years in reporting and editing positions in Illinois, Iowa, Missouri, Ohio and Florida.