Eye of Storm Debby mapped as Florida on tornado watch while more than 1,500 flights canceled

As Tropical Storm Debby races toward Florida , the National Weather Service issued a forecast mapping where the eye of the storm is likely to strike in the coming days, indicating danger from tornadoes , too, as over 1,500 flights were canceled ahead of the storm.

First, Debby will likely strengthen into a hurricane as it reaches a warm spot of water over the Gulf of Mexico nearing Florida's West Coast. The waters in the area were described previously as extremely warm, and that could strengthen the storm.

From there, the storm is expected to batter Florida's Big Bend between late Monday morning and Monday afternoon, the latest advisory from the NWS indicated .

READ MORE: Florida woman dies after being electrocuted in heavy rain as Storm Debby barrels toward state

READ MORE: Hurricane watch issued for parts of Florida as Gulf Coast braces for Tropical Storm Debby

If you cannot see the map above, click here .

There are already mandatory evacuation orders in place for Citrus, DIxie and Franklin counties, and a state of emergency was declared by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis for 61 of the state's 67 counties.

The state is buckling down for flooding, heavy winds, a nasty storm surge between 2 and 4 feet (or up to 7 feet in some areas) and torrential rains that might dump several inches on some areas, resulting in the flooding.

After that, the storm is expected to make its way up the East Coast a bit, with Georgia preparing for the worst as well. But in the short term, Florida, specifically its West Coast and Panhandle as well as the Big Bend.

Click here to follow the Mirror US on Google News to stay up to date with all the latest news, sports and entertainment stories.

Most areas of the state are under some form of tropical alert, however, with almost none of the state safe. Warnings are also in effect up the East Coast through South Carolina, where preparations for floods are being made.

The center of the storm is approximately 125 miles west-southwest of Tampa and about 145 miles south-southwest of Cedar Key. It was traveling at approximately 13 mph and had sustained wind speeds of 65 mph.

Flight cancellations

Tropical Storm Debby has led to thousands of canceled flights even before it makes landfall in Florida. Over 1,500 flights were canceled, and almost 3,000 were delayed as of noon EDT on Sunday, according to data from FlightAware.

American Airlines and JetBlue had the highest rate of cancellations for America's major carriers, with about 16% of their schedules canceled. Other airlines that suffered cancellations and delays include Delta, Frontier, Southwest, Spirit and United.

If flights are canceled, passengers are entitled to refunds under U.S. Department of Transportation rules. Other rules apply to delays, depending on the number of hours the flight is delayed.

Tornado alerts

Tornado alerts are also in place for several areas amid the anticipated landfall of Tropical Storm Debby, with the NWS cautioning residents.

"A few tornadoes are possible through Monday morning, mainly over western and northern Florida and southern Georgia," the NWS wrote in its 2 p.m. update on the storm. More information about the tornadoes wasn't immediately available.