It’s still possible Tropical Storm Sara will restrengthen upon emerging in the Gulf of Mexico next week, though chances of a direct U.S. impact are lower than they were earlier this week.
The most likely impacts to the U.S. will be some rainfall in the eastern Gulf Coast states, whereas earlier this week some meteorologists feared Sara would make landfall as a Category 2 hurricane.
As of Friday afternoon, Tropical Storm Sara was creeping along northern Honduras with maximum sustained winds of 50 mph. The storm’s slow pace was unleashing a deluge of rain on Honduras, and the storm is expected to trek through Belize, Guatemala and the Yucatan Peninsula this weekend.
A map created by AccuWeather shows some impacts from Tropical Storm Sara are expected in Florida. Rain will hit the Sunshine State by the middle of next week. A map created by AccuWeather shows some impacts from Tropical Storm Sara are expected in Florida. Rain will hit the Sunshine State by the middle of next week. AccuWeather
Since it formed so close to land, Sara’s strength has been restricted to that of a tropical storm. The National Hurricane Center (NHC) anticipates that Sara will weaken into a post-Tropical Depression by Monday afternoon.
There are several hurdles standing in the storm’s way, but there’s still a chance it could hit Florida as a tropical storm, AccuWeather senior meteorologist Alan Reppert told Newsweek.
However, Sara’s forecast path through the Yucatan Peninsula is not conducive for storm redevelopment, and even if the storm does emerge intact, wind shear in the Gulf could tear it apart before it impacts the U.S., Reppert said.
If Tropical Storm Sara becomes disorganized as it moves over land later this weekend, it is unlikely to strengthen again upon emerging into the Gulf, AccuWeather reported. However, if the storm maintains control, restrengthening becomes more likely, given that Gulf waters, though cooler than those in the Caribbean, are warm enough to sustain a tropical storm.
Should the storm restrengthen, most spaghetti models, or computer models predicting possible storm paths, show the storm trekking toward Florida’s western coast, which recently battled two, back-to-back hurricanes with Hurricane Helene in September and Hurricane Milton in October.
Regardless of redevelopment, AccuWeather is forecasting rain related to the storm to impact the Sunshine State by midweek.
Even if Tropical Storm Sara dissolves, some of its excessive moisture will be directed northward. A map created by AccuWeather anticipates up to 4 inches of rain could impact Florida’s western coast on Wednesday, with lesser amounts up to 2 inches impacting the panhandle and parts of Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana. These are lower amounts than what was forecast earlier this week when meteorologists still feared the storm could hit Florida as a hurricane.
Heavy rainfall remains the largest threat from Tropical Storm Sara as it works its way through Central America. The NHC warned that heavy rainfall in Belize, El Salvador, Guatemala, Nicaragua, and portions of Mexico could cause
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