MIAMI (AP) — A storm system that was brewing in the Gulf of Mexico strengthened into Tropical Storm Milton on Saturday, and forecasters warned that it could intensify into a hurricane and slam into the west coast of Florida next week. Tropical Storm Milton was about 245 miles (395 kilometers) north of Veracruz, Mexico, the National Hurricane Center in Miami said in an afternoon advisory. It had maximum sustained winds of 40 mph (65 kph) and was heading toward the north-northeast at 3 mph (6 kph).
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis declared a state of emergency in 35 counties ahead of the storm’s potential landfall. Since many of those counties are still recovering from Hurricane Helene, DeSantis asked the Florida Division of Emergency Management and the Florida Department of Transportation to coordinate all available resources and personnel to supplement local communities as they expedite debris removal.
Though no coastal watches or warnings were in effect, the hurricane center said the Florida Peninsula, the Florida Keys, Mexico’s Yucatan peninsula and the northwestern Bahamas should monitor the system’s progress. The storm is forecast to strengthen and bring the risk of life-threatening impacts to parts of Florida, with hurricane and storm-surge watches likely in effect from Sunday. Parts of the state are expected to have heavy rainfall beginning that day, threatening flash, urban, and areal flooding, along with some river flooding.
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