KATC StormTeam 3 Weather BLOG

Tropical Storm Fay has begun drifting westward…at about 5 mph. It will be painfully slow and wet for Florida with a daily 5-10” rain or more possible per day over the next several days. Some areas in east-central Florida have received between 20 and 30” with the northern peninsula getting inundated tonight and tomorrow spreading slowly westward through the panhandle this weekend. Two big questions remain: 1- Will circulation center of Fay stay inland after it crosses the peninsula? 2-Will there be any kind of impact in Acadiana? The National Hurricane Center forecast track pretty much parallels the coast just inland allowing for Fay to slowly weaken through tomorrow and remain a soaking depression for several days thereafter. The steering currents will likely collapse again by Sunday allowing for the possibility of major flooding rains anywhere from extreme eastern Louisiana through the Florida panhandle. Given this scenario all we should expect in Acadiana is a healthy northerly breeze to develop Sunday into Monday no worse than 15-25mph winds with a few enhanced tropical rain bands possible during the same time-frame. Now if Fay were to go a little farther south and push a little farther west then we would certainly see a more active scenario, but at this point I would be leaning toward a stall well east (or northeast) of Acadiana…as always stay tuned over the next few days as the forecast could change. In the near term, expect partly sunny, hot and humid conditions Friday and Saturday with highs reaching the lower 90s with scattered afternoon storms still possible.