Tropical storm Milton forms in the Gulf of Mexico

A hurricane in the Gulf of Mexico could deal Florida another potentially catastrophic blow, less than 10 days after Hurricane Helene made landfall there.

According to the National Hurricane Center, tropical storm Milton developed in the Gulf of Mexico and is expected to intensify into a hurricane that is moving toward Florida and may have an impact on the state's western coast on Saturday.

Next week, Milton is expected to intensify and deliver potentially fatal consequences to some areas of Florida's west coast.

Many of the Florida regions that were recently severely impacted by Hurricane Helene will probably need to issue hurricane and storm surge watches on Sunday. Much ahead of the arrival of the tropical cyclone, the NHC predicted pockets of heavy rainfall will affect parts of the state on Sunday and Monday, increasing the danger of flooding.

Any storm that is at least a Category 3 hurricane and has maximum sustained winds of at least 111 miles per hour is considered a big hurricane.

Milton was located 385 miles to the west-northwest and 245 miles north of Veracruz, Mexico, as of 5 p.m. Eastern Time on Saturday. It was crawling 3 mph northeast at its strongest sustained wind speed of 40 mph.

The prediction was released a little over a week after Hurricane Helene made landfall in Florida and the Southeast, resulting in significant damage and the deaths of at least 229 people across six states. On Thursday, President Biden flew over the Big Bend region of Florida, the epicenter of Hurricane Helene, a Category 4 hurricane. Mr. Biden stated that the rebuilding effort would require "billions of dollars" while towns continue to suffer from a lack of running water, electricity, and usable roads. Hundreds of individuals are still missing.

The Florida Peninsula and the Florida Keys could see rainfall totals of five to twelve inches, according to the hurricane center, which is based in Milton. The hurricane center warned of the possibility of floods in addition to the heavy rainfall.

People in the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico, the Florida Peninsula, the Florida Keys, and the Bahamas are being advised by the hurricane center to keep a close eye on this storm this weekend and early next week in case it has any effects.