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06-11-2006, 05:58 AM
1st tropical depression heads toward Fla. By JENNIFER KAY, Associated Press Writer
MIAMI - A tropical depression in the Caribbean headed toward Florida on Sunday and was expected to become the first named storm of the 2006 Atlantic hurricane season.
The depression formed Saturday, nine days after the official start of the season, but the poorly organized system was not expected to become a hurricane, according to the National Hurricane Center.
"It will be relatively weak in terms of wind, but that doesn't mean it's going to be weak in terms of rainfall," senior hurricane specialist Stacy Stewart said.
The system, which had maximum sustained wind near 35 mph, would be named Alberto if it reaches the 39 mph threshold for a tropical storm.
At 5 a.m. EDT, the depression was centered over the Eastern Gulf of Mexico about 335 miles west southwest of Key West, Fla., and about 445 miles south southwest of Apalachicola, Fla., forecasters said. It was moving northwest near 9 mph.
The hurricane center recommended tropical storm warnings for the Cuban provinces of Pinar Del Rio and the Isle of Youth.
Over the next two days, the system is expected to move through the Yucatan Channel into the southeastern Gulf of Mexico, then toward Florida where it could make landfall Monday or Tuesday somewhere between South Florida and the western tip of the Panhandle, forecasters said.
Scientists predict the 2006 season could produce up to 16 named storms, six of them major hurricanes.
Last year's hurricane season was the busiest and most destructive in recorded history. Hurricane Katrina devastated Louisiana and Mississippi and was blamed for more than 1,570 deaths in Louisiana alone.
The season was the busiest in 154 years of storm tracking, with records set for the number of named storms (28) and hurricanes (15). Forecasters used up their list of 21 proper names (beginning with Arlene and ending with Wilma) and had to use the Greek alphabet to name storms for the first time.
Meteorologists have said the Atlantic is not as warm as it was at this time in 2005, meaning potential storms would have less of the energy needed to develop into hurricanes.
MIAMI - A tropical depression in the Caribbean headed toward Florida on Sunday and was expected to become the first named storm of the 2006 Atlantic hurricane season.
The depression formed Saturday, nine days after the official start of the season, but the poorly organized system was not expected to become a hurricane, according to the National Hurricane Center.
"It will be relatively weak in terms of wind, but that doesn't mean it's going to be weak in terms of rainfall," senior hurricane specialist Stacy Stewart said.
The system, which had maximum sustained wind near 35 mph, would be named Alberto if it reaches the 39 mph threshold for a tropical storm.
At 5 a.m. EDT, the depression was centered over the Eastern Gulf of Mexico about 335 miles west southwest of Key West, Fla., and about 445 miles south southwest of Apalachicola, Fla., forecasters said. It was moving northwest near 9 mph.
The hurricane center recommended tropical storm warnings for the Cuban provinces of Pinar Del Rio and the Isle of Youth.
Over the next two days, the system is expected to move through the Yucatan Channel into the southeastern Gulf of Mexico, then toward Florida where it could make landfall Monday or Tuesday somewhere between South Florida and the western tip of the Panhandle, forecasters said.
Scientists predict the 2006 season could produce up to 16 named storms, six of them major hurricanes.
Last year's hurricane season was the busiest and most destructive in recorded history. Hurricane Katrina devastated Louisiana and Mississippi and was blamed for more than 1,570 deaths in Louisiana alone.
The season was the busiest in 154 years of storm tracking, with records set for the number of named storms (28) and hurricanes (15). Forecasters used up their list of 21 proper names (beginning with Arlene and ending with Wilma) and had to use the Greek alphabet to name storms for the first time.
Meteorologists have said the Atlantic is not as warm as it was at this time in 2005, meaning potential storms would have less of the energy needed to develop into hurricanes.