[ad_1]
(CNN) – Tropical storm Eta fell Sunday night in the Florida Keys and will continue to bring hurricane conditions to the area throughout Monday.
Last Sunday Eta had landed on the central-southern coast of Cuba.
The storm experienced maximum sustained winds of 100km / h when it hit Lower Metacumbe Key Sunday night, according to the U.S. National Hurricane Center (NHC).
PHOTOS | The devastating passage of Eta through Central America and Mexico
The tropical storm was expected to bring a total isolated maximum rainfall of about 60 centimeters, the NHC said.
The amount of rainfall is likely to lead to flash floods and life-threatening landslides, as well as a storm surge that will raise water levels two to four feet above normal coastal tides, according to the NHC.
Hurricane warning of Eta in Florida
“Eta’s center is expected to pass near or over the Florida Keys early this evening and Monday, and will be on the southeastern Gulf of Mexico Monday and late Tuesday,” the NHC said.
A hurricane warning has been issued for the Florida Keys from Ocean Reef to Dry Tortugas, including Florida Bay.
The Florida Keys could experience storm flooding in the range of 2 to 120 centimeters with rainfall of 15 to 12 centimeters everywhere, according to an update from the Monroe County Joint Information Center at 6pm.
Some parts of Monroe County may have an isolated maximum rainfall of about 18 inches until Wednesday night, according to the update.
“Rain floods can be exacerbated by coastal flooding in some areas and neighborhoods that are prone to long-term poor drainage will likely flood their streets for a few days,” according to the National Weather Service in Key West.
School district closures
Heavy rains and floods in Oakland Park, Florida already have the city’s public works system “at or near the edge,” according to David Rafter, an Oakland Park public information officer.
“Oakland Park Parks and Public Works staff have been working all night and all day to address flood problems to the best of our ability,” Rafter said in an update on Tropical Storm Eta.
At least five school districts in South Florida, including Miami-Dade, will close on Monday due to the potential impact of Eta, the districts announced on social media.
In Miami-Dade, all bridges have been closed, Mayor Carlos Giménez said. He said strong winds are expected between Sunday and Monday, as well as the possibility of tornadoes.
A tropical storm alert is also in place for the Cayman Islands and the northwestern Bahamas.
On Tuesday afternoon, Eta landed along the Nicaraguan coast as a Category 4 hurricane. The week brought heavy rains in parts of Nicaragua and Honduras.
What is happening in Latin America and the Caribbean
In Latin America and the Caribbean, emergency plans are currently underway for disasters in Cuba and Mexico, while evacuation and rescue operations continue in Guatemala and Honduras, which have been the hardest hit so far, with dozens of deaths or missing.
In Honduras, at least 38 people have died and eight are missing, according to the country’s Standing Emergency Commission. More than 60,000 people were evacuated from their homes, the commission said, and more than 1.8 million people across the country were affected by the storm.
In Cuba, the country’s Civil Defense updated its alarms on Saturday and issued an “Alarm Phase” for several western and central areas.
“Against ETA, there is no time to waste and protection is the priority,” Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel tweeted Saturday.
“Rains never seen before”
In Mexico, the National Meteorological Service said that “Eta’s wide circulation is causing heavy to torrential rains in the Yucatan Peninsula and southeast Mexico.” The rain is expected to last until Monday, the report said, and will affect the states of Chiapas, Oaxaca, Quintana Roo, Tabasco and Yucatán.
Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador suspended an initially planned visit to the states of Nayarit and Sinaloa, and instead traveled to the state of Tabasco on Saturday, due to floods and weather conditions linked to the Age.
López Obrador warned of a possible “emergency situation” in Tabasco as floods from Eta are expected, and said he called an emergency meeting of the Security Cabinet.
“We are talking about unprecedented rains” in the area, López Obrador said in a video message posted on his official Twitter account.
López Obrador said emergency preparations are underway to prevent the destruction and loss of life.
Eta looks to South Florida
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis declared a state of emergency for eight counties on Saturday in the face of Eta’s approach, according to Fredrick Piccolo Jr., the governor’s director of communications.
The governor declared an emergency for Broward, Collier, Hendry, Lee, Martin, Miami-Dade, Monroe, and Palm Beach counties in South Florida “as a precaution,” Piccolo said. Counties include the cities of Miami, West Palm Beach, Fort Lauderdale, Fort Myers, and Key West.
The hurricane clock covers the south coast of Florida from Golden Beach to Bonita Beach. A hurricane clock means hurricane conditions are possible within the next 48 hours.
A tropical storm warning is in effect for the Florida coast from the Brevard / Volusia County Line to Englewood, including Florida Bay, as well as Lake Okeechobee.
“Recent heavy rains in the region have caused soil saturation and flash urban floods could become a threat by the end of the weekend and early next week, depending on how the storm progresses,” the forecaster said. CNN Derek Van Dam.
Flood alarm
Flood monitoring is in place for much of southern Florida until Tuesday night.
Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Giménez declared a state of emergency on Friday while monitoring the storm. Giménez said the soil is already saturated with several days of rain, so “the floods are a big concern”.
In addition to heavy rains, Eta is expected to bring a dangerous storm surge to Florida’s coastal areas.
CNN’s Alaa Elassar, Melissa Alonso, Radina Gigova, Mallika Kallingal, Gene Norman, Susannah Cullinane, Taylor Barnes, Marlon Sorto and Juan Paz contributed to this report.
Source link
