At 11 a.m. Wednesday, the center of Tropical Storm Elsa was making landfall at Florida's Big Bend region, near the Big Bend Wildlife Management Area along the North Florida Gulf Coast. The winds were holding steady from earlier in the morning at 65 miles per hour maximum sustained as it treks north at 14 mph. The storm is expected to weaken as it continues moving over land.
SUMMARY OF 1100 AM EDT...1500 UTC...INFORMATION
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LOCATION...29.9N 83.6W
ABOUT 65 MI...100 KM NNW OF CEDAR KEY FLORIDA
ABOUT 115 MI...190 KM WSW OF JACKSONVILLE FLORIDA
MAXIMUM SUSTAINED WINDS...65 MPH...100 KM/H
PRESENT MOVEMENT...N OR 360 DEGREES AT 14 MPH...22 KM/H
MINIMUM CENTRAL PRESSURE...999 MB...29.50 INCHES
WATCHES AND WARNINGS
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CHANGES WITH THIS ADVISORY:
All warnings south of Aripeka, Florida, have been discontinued.
The hurricane warning along the west coast of Florida has been
changed to a Tropical Storm Warning.
The Storm Surge Watch for the Florida Gulf coast has been
discontinued.
The Tropical Storm Watch has been extended northward along the
mid-Atlantic coast to Sandy Hook, New Jersey, including the
Chesapeake Bay south of North Beach, the tidal Potomac south
of Cobb Island, and Delaware Bay south of Slaughter Beach.
SUMMARY OF WATCHES AND WARNINGS IN EFFECT:
A Storm Surge Warning is in effect for...
* West coast of Florida from Aripeka to the Aucilla River
A Tropical Storm Warning is in effect for...
* West coast of Florida from Aripeka to Ochlockonee River
* Mouth of St. Marys River, Georgia to Little River Inlet, South
Carolina
A Tropical Storm Watch is in effect for...
* North of Little River Inlet, South Carolina to Sandy Hook, New
Jersey
* Pamlico and Albemarle Sounds
* Chesapeake Bay south of North Beach and the tidal Potomac south
of Cobb Island
* Delaware Bay south of Slaughter Beach
DISCUSSION AND OUTLOOK
----------------------
At 1100 AM EDT (1500 UTC), the center of Tropical Storm Elsa was
located near latitude 29.9 North, longitude 83.6 West. Elsa is
moving toward the north near 14 mph (22 km/h), and a generally
northward motion is expected to continue through this afternoon. A
turn toward the north-northeast is expected late this afternoon or
tonight, followed by a faster northeastward motion by late Thursday.
On the forecast track, Elsa will continue to move inland into
Florida this afternoon. The storm should then move across the
southeastern and mid-Atlantic United States through Thursday.
Maximum sustained winds are near 65 mph (100 km/h) with higher
gusts. Weakening is expected as Elsa moves further inland this
afternoon into tomorrow.
Tropical-storm-force winds extend outward up to 90 miles (150 km)
from the center. An unofficial weather station at Horseshoe Beach,
Florida recently measured a sustained wind of 62 mph (100 km/h)
gusting to 71 mph (114 km/h). Earlier, a C-MAN station at Cedar
Key, Florida measured a sustained wind of 44 mph (71 km/h) gusting
to 59 mph (95 km/h).
The estimated minimum central pressure is 999 mb (29.50 inches).