UPDATE THURSDAY AUGUST 1 5:45PM ==============
Governor Ron DeSantis issued an emergency declaration ahead of invest 97L, which could become a tropical depression in the next few days.
His executive order covers every county in Florida and was issued as a precaution, depending on how quickly the system moves and how much rain could fall.
ORIGINAL REPORT=============
Here's your Thursday evening check on the tropics.
A tropical system will be off the SWFL coast on Sunday, leading to higher rain chances, breezy conditions and minor coastal flooding.
Your Fox 4 Weather Team and the National Hurricane Center are monitoring a well-defined tropical wave producing a large area of disorganized showers and thunderstorms over Hispaniola, Puerto Rico, the Southeastern Bahamas, and the adjacent waters of the southwestern Atlantic and northeastern Caribbean Sea.
A tropical depression is likely to form this weekend near the Florida Straits or over the eastern Gulf of Mexico.
SWFL IMPACTS: Considering the system's proximity, we'll have higher than normal rain chances Saturday afternoon into early next week. (How long those higher rain chances linger into next week depend on how quickly its moving.)
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW:
- Wet weather is likely Saturday PM, Sunday into Monday
- Most impacts in SWFL will be on Sunday, when a tropical depression or storm is closest
- Sunday will be breezy with gusts to 30 mph. How far inland gusty winds are depends on how close it is to the coast
- 2-5" of rain are expected through the weekend, most along the coast
FOX 4 EVENING METEOROLOGIST KATIE WALLS
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