Topline
The National Hurricane Center has placed parts of Texas under a tropical storm watch, as a potential cyclone that could develop into this year’s first named tropical storm by Wednesday looms in the Gulf of Mexico.
Key Facts
The storm system—known as Potential Tropical Cyclone One—has maximum sustained winds of nearly 40 mph and is developing off Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula and nearly 500 miles southeast of Brownsville, Texas, according to the NHC.
The disturbance is not yet a tropical storm, but could develop into one in the next 48 hours, which would make it Tropical Storm Alberto and mark the start of the 2024 hurricane season.
Parts of the Texas and Mexico coasts are under a tropical storm watch as the NHC expects a storm surge to bring one to four feet worth of rising ocean waters to dry areas in Galveston Bay, Sargent, Sabine Pass and the mouth of the Rio Grande.
Louisiana will be under a risk of increased rainfall on Tuesday, CNN reported, which noted soil and area rivers in the western part of the state are still holding on to a significant amount of water after a wet spring.
The storm system is not expected to make landfall in the U.S. according to its current track, but the NHC says flooding and rain could extend well beyond its center.
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Key Background
Last year’s hurricane season kicked off on June 2, when Tropical Storm Arlene impacted some parts of Florida with up to five inches of rain. 2023’s hurricane season produced above-average activity, with the Atlantic experiencing 20 named storms during the year. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration predicted the most active storm season it has ever forecasted will materialize this year. The federal agency forecasts between 17 and 25 named storms—including tropical storms and hurricanes—for 2024, citing abnormally warm sea surface temperatures and La Niña, a weather phenomenon that brings cooler temperatures to the Pacific and limits winds that could cancel out the formation of hurricanes.
Further Reading
Government Forecasters Issue Most Dire Hurricane Season Prediction In Their History—Here’s Why (Forbes)
Residential Strategies For Hurricane Resistance (Forbes)