Tropical storm threatens Fla. panhandle

UPDATED:

PENSACOLA BEACH, Fla. — Brewing in the Gulf of Mexico, Tropical Storm Claudette — likely the first to strike the U.S. mainland this year — was bringing heavy rain to the Florida panhandle Sunday.

Claudette had winds of at least 50 mph but was not expected to cause significant flooding or wind damage. Lurking more ominously in the Atlantic was Tropical Storm Bill, which quickly was turning into a powerful storm over the warm waters in the open Atlantic Ocean with sustained winds of 65 mph. Ana, a tropical storm that also was churning in the Atlantic, weakened to a depression.

Heavy rain began in the afternoon in Pensacola as Claudette approached. On Pensacola Beach, the National Park Service closed low-lying roads that connect the restaurants and hotels to the undeveloped national seashore and historic Fort Pickens Fort.

The Park Service said campers would be ordered to leave the area because of the likelihood of the road flooding.

In Panama City, the Bay County Emergency Operations Center opened a shelter at a local high school for residents of low-lying areas and people with special needs.

Earlier along Pensacola Beach, surfers under gray skies enjoyed the waves and tourists mingled on the beach, despite a tropical storm warning covering most of the panhandle, from the Alabama state line to the Suwanee River more than 300 miles to the east.

Miguel Gonzalez, on vacation from North Carolina, was unconcerned about the storm as he readied his children for day on Pensacola Beach, but he said his family would head in when the rain started.

“We will just stay out there for an hour or so, take a few pictures and then leave,” he said.

Rainfall of 3 to 5 inches was expected, with isolated areas getting up to 10 inches, forecasters said.

“We may see some heavy rains as a result, but we don’t expect any high winds or coastal flooding,” said John Dosh, manager of emergency management. “This event is a good example of how quickly a tropical storm can develop. We won’t always have a lot of warning. This is why citizens need to be prepared throughout hurricane season.”

Pensacola Beach is still recovering from Hurricane Ivan, which devastated the western Florida panhandle and parts of Alabama in 2004.

At 5 p.m. EDT, Claudette was about 40 miles west-southwest of Apalachicola and moving northwest at about 14 mph. Its center was expected to reach the northern Gulf Coast by Sunday evening.

Meanwhile, Ana’s winds diminished to 35 mph, and it was expected to make landfall at the Leeward Islands early Monday. Watches were posted for Puerto Rico, the U.S. and British Virgin Islands, Antigua, St. Maarten and several other islands in the area. Ana was forecast to bring 2 to 4 inches of rain.

Tropical Storm Bill, however, was intensifying far from land in the open Atlantic and could become a hurricane late Sunday or on Monday.

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