Tropical Storm Emily forms in Gulf; warning issued for SWFL
Dan DeLucaTropical Storm Emily formed just before 8 a.m. Monday morning just west of Tampa, the National Hurricane Center said.
A Tropical Storm Warning has been issued for the west coast of Florida from the Anclote River southward to Bonita Beach.
Radar data from Tampa indicate that Emily's maximum sustained winds have increased to near 45 mph with higher gusts. Little change in strength is forecast until landfall occurs this afternoon. Emily is expected to weaken to a tropical depression while it moves across the Florida peninsula tonight.
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On the forecast track, the center of Emily is expected to move inland over the the west-central Florida peninsula later today and move across central Florida through tonight.
Tropical-storm force winds extend outward up to 60 miles from the center.
Emily is expected to produce total rain accumulations of 2 to 4 inches through Monday night between the Tampa Bay area and Naples, with isolated amounts up to 8 inches possible.
The National Weather Service has issued a flood watch for parts of Southwest Florida, including Collier, Lee and Charlotte counties.
This is a developing story.