National Hurricane Center Eyes Caribbean System That Could Hit Florida as Named Storm

It’s not even a tropical depression or storm yet, but the National Hurricane Center has its eye on a system that could drench Florida early next week.

Swirling through the northwest Caribbean Sea as of Friday evening, the area of disturbed weather is currently designated Invest 93L by the NHC — but could develop over the weekend into the season’s next named storm: Idalia.

The system would likely hit Florida from the Gulf of Mexico on Tuesday or Wednesday, before possibly churning up along the coast, according to Weather.com.

Whether it does so as a larger, named storm or a simple stretch of increased rain will likely be determined by how the system comes together — or doesn't — over Sunday and Monday, the site reported.

As of early Saturday, the NHC was bullish on the system’s chances of growing into something more significant.

“Environmental conditions appear  conducive for further development of this system during the next several days, and a tropical depression is likely to form late this weekend or early next week while it moves generally northward over the eastern Gulf of Mexico,” according to an NHC outlook.

“Interests in the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico, western Cuba, and Florida should monitor the progress of this system.”

That prediction, issued at 2 a.m. Saturday, put the chances of formation over the next 48 hours at 60% — but the chances of formation over the next seven days at 90%.

On Thursday, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis wrote on X — formerly Twitter — that he had directed the state’s emergency management team “to prepare for a potential tropical system currently moving across the Yucatán Peninsula. Residents should remain vigilant and prepare for possible impacts early next week.”