Tropical Storm Francine forecast to form in Gulf on Monday, become a hurricane within days

Tropical storm watches were in effect Monday for northeastern Mexico and far southern Texas as forecasters await the formation of Tropical Storm Francine over the Gulf of Mexico.

Francine is expected to develop Monday and impact the Texas and Louisiana as a hurricane by midweek, according to the National Hurricane Center. It is predicted to track slowly northwest, then north.

“(The system) is expected to move inland along the Texas-Louisiana border,” said AccuWeather Meteorologist Isaac Longley. “One of the main concerns with this storm is that it is forecast to move into an area already impacted by heavy rain and flooding from a separate tropical rainstorm this past week. The ground across far eastern Texas and into Louisiana is already saturated, so it would not take much rain to cause flooding across these areas.”

AccuWeather expert meteorologists say 60-70 mph wind gusts are possible along the Gulf Coast through Thursday.

Meanwhile, two systems in the eastern Atlantic are being monitored and could develop into tropical depressions.

In the central Atlantic, an elongated trough of low pressure could become a tropical depression in the next few days as it moves west, forecasters said.

As of 8 a.m. Monday, it had a 60% chance of forming in the next two to seven days.

Meanwhile, a third system trailing close behind could become a tropical depression in the mid to latter part of this week, after it interacts with an approaching tropical wave, forecasters said. As of 8 a.m. Monday, it has a 60% chance of forming in the next seven days.

Experts at Colorado State University issued a new forecast Tuesday , predicting below-normal hurricane activity in the Atlantic for the next two weeks.

Here’s what the next two weeks of hurricane season should look like, according to experts

Overall, CSU experts predict 23 named storms in the 2024 season, leaving the possibility of 18 more before the season ends on Nov. 30. The average number of named storms between 1991 to 2020 is 14.4.

AccuWeather experts Tuesday afternoon also updated their forecast, now calling for less named storms, hurricanes and major hurricanes for the remainder of the season. Their forecast predicts between 16 and 20 named storms, with two to four more direct impacts to the U.S.

This Labor Day weekend was the first without a named storm in the Atlantic in 27 years, according to AccuWeather.

After Francine, the next named storm will be Gordon.