CNN
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A strengthening storm that hit Florida with heavy rains and powerful winds this weekend is making its way up the East Coast, threatening floods, dangerous surf, power outages and travel disruptions.
Over 15 million people are at risk of severe thunderstorms with damaging winds Sunday across parts of Florida, the Carolinas and Virginia, according to the Storm Prediction Center.
The storm is forecast to track northeast out of Florida Sunday and hug the East Coast, expanding its impacts from Georgia to parts of the Northeast. Parts of South Carolina north into Pennsylvania and New Jersey are expected to see heavy rainfall.
John Raoux/AP
The Miami, Ohio, band played as rain poured down at an NCAA football game on Saturday in Orlando, Florida.
The National Weather Service issued high wind warnings on Sunday for portions of southern Connecticut, southeastern New York and Boston, warning of the potential for downed trees and power lines.
Travel in those areas will be difficult, the weather service said, “If possible, remain in the lower levels of your home during the windstorm, and avoid windows. Use caution if you must drive.”
The heaviest rain is expected in the Carolinas and coastal Georgia as the storm strengthens and begins to accelerate up the coast. Rain will begin across the mid-Atlantic and parts of the Northeast by Sunday afternoon, but the heaviest will arrive late Sunday.
Hours of steady rainfall may lead to flooding in urban areas and spots with poor drainage.
Strong wind gusts will slam coastal areas from the Southeast through the mid-Atlantic on Sunday and the coastal Northeast at night. Gusts of 40 to 50 mph are possible for much of the coast.
The combination of strong winds and heavy rainfall will likely slow travel across a swath of the region, especially the busy I-95 corridor. Gusty winds and reduced visibilities may also delay some air travel.
Damon Higgins/The Palm Beach Post/USA Today Network
Part of South Ocean Boulevard in Palm Beach, Florida, is seen covered in water Saturday afternoon.
The storm swept through much of Florida as it impacted the region.
“This is only a precursor of what is to come as the storm center is still located over the eastern Gulf of Mexico while gathering strength more rapidly,” the Weather Prediction Center said Saturday.
“Stay home unless it is absolutely necessary to go out,” the Miami-Dade County Department of Emergency Management warned as heavy rains soaked roads.
The Weather Service’s Tampa Bay office warned residents to stay alert for possible tornado warnings overnight Saturday into Sunday.
“As the warm front with this system lifts northward, our wind and tornado threat will increase overnight as the low level wind field strengthens,” forecasters wrote on X.
Here’s a timeline of the storm’s path, according to the Weather Prediction Center:
- On Sunday, the center is expected to skirt the Southeast US coast, bringing heavy rain up through the coastal plains and possibly damaging winds.
- By Sunday night, the heavy rain should be tapering off over the Southeast but quickly spreading into the Mid-Atlantic states.
- The storm center will then track into New England on Monday as the system expands its impact across much of the eastern US.
The storm will reach its peak strength on Monday, just in time to deliver disruption to a large portion of the Northeast. It is forecast to track close to the Northeast coast during this time – but could also move farther away from the coast.
Regardless of its exact track, the storm will bring nor’easter-like impacts to the coastal Northeast on Monday — minus the snow.
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