Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., in a Friday tweet, urged all Floridians to take Hurricane Elsa seriously.
He wrote: "Just received a briefing from (National Hurricane Center) Atlantic Director Ken Graham on Hurricane #Elsa. Elsa remains a fast moving storm & Floridians should take it seriously. Follow @FLSERT, @NHC_Atlantic & visit rickscott.senate.gov/Hurricanes for preparedness tips, info & resources."
The National Hurricane Center said most of the state is in the forecast path of the 75 mph storm, which potentially could threaten South Florida on Monday or Tuesday. As of 11 a.m. the storm was moving west northwest at 29 mph.
The storm was passing near St. Vincent and St. Lucia while hurricane conditions spread through the Windward Islands. The airport in St Lucia recently reported sustained winds of 46 mph and a wind gust of 79 mph.
Elsa is expected to produce rainfall totals of 4-8 inches with maximum amounts of 15 inches on Friday across the Windward and southern Leeward Islands, including Barbados. This rain may lead to isolated flash flooding and mudslides.
Hurricane warnings were posted for the southern part of Haiti.
By Sunday, Elsa is forecast to move near Jamaica and portions of eastern Cuba. Little change in strength is forecast during the next 48 hours. Some decrease in winds is possible on Monday as Else interacts with Cuba.
And the Hurricane Center said: "There is a risk of storm surge, wind, and rainfall impacts in the Florida Keyes and portions of the Florida peninsula early next week.
"However, the forecast uncertainty remains larger than usual due to Elsa's potential interaction with the Greater Antilles this weekend. Interest in Florida should monitor Elsa's progress and updates to the forecast."
Jeffrey Rodack ✉
Jeffrey Rodack, who has nearly a half century in news as a senior editor and city editor for national and local publications, has covered politics for Newsmax for nearly seven years.
© 2024 Newsmax. All rights reserved.