Eta Likely To Stay Over The Gulf This Week, But Moisture Spreads Into South Carolina

Eta has come to a near halt in the southern Gulf of Mexico and is likely to remain over the Gulf of Mexico for several more days.

 
The tropical storm was responsible for numerous reports of flooding and tropical storm force winds in South Florida Sunday through Monday morning. 6 to 12 inches of rain occurred in many parts of metropolitan Miami-Dade and Broward counties. Nearly 18 inches of rain fell near Miramar in Broward county according to a report passed along by the National Weather Service.

 
As of mid-morning Tuesday, the Eta had nearly stalled about 60 miles from the western tip of Cuba with top sustained winds of 60 mph. The storm is expected to move little on Tuesday, but is likely to drift toward the north Wednesday and could strengthen to near hurricane status once again. Moisture high in the atmosphere associated with Eta will get caught up in an approaching cold front, leading to locally heavy rainfall in the Palmetto State over the next few days. This heavy rain may lead to areas of flash flooding.

 
 
Eta is increasingly likely to encounter higher wind shear and dry air starting Thursday, which would cause the storm to weaken over the Gulf of Mexico. Forecasters at the Hurricane Center said confidence in the forecast is still not high and that residents along the Gulf coast should monitor Eta's progress in the coming days.

 
Subtropical Storm Theta formed in the open waters of the central Atlantic Ocean Monday evening. It's the season's 29th named storm -- a new all-time record for the number of named storms in the Atlantic Basin in one season. Theta is not forecast to affect land areas at this time. Yet another tropical wave in the central Caribbean has a high chance of becoming the season's next tropical depression later this week or weekend when it reaches the western Caribbean. It is far too soon to say whether it will ever impact the U.S. coastline.