Tropical Storm Francine to form into hurricane as chilling weather maps show Louisiana coast warnings

New maps show Tropical Storm Francine is moving from the coast of Mexico towards Texas, bringing with it up to a foot of rain before coming ashore in Louisiana Wednesday night as a hurricane .

The current forecast from the National Hurricane Center calls for a Category 1 hurricane landfall in Louisiana on Wednesday evening. Forecasters are tracking multiple areas of concern for potential development this week, Fox Weather reported.

"While it is too soon to pinpoint the exact location and magnitude of impacts, the potential for life-threatening storm surge and damaging winds are increasing for portions of the Louisiana and upper Texas coastlines beginning Tuesday night," the NHC said.

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Francine is currently located about 245 miles southeast of the mouth of the Rio Grande, and about 480 miles south-southeast of Cameron, Louisiana, the Associated Press reported. Francine's top winds Monday morning were about 50 miles per hour.

A tropical storm is defined by sustained winds between 39 mph and 73 mph. The NHC said Tropical Storm Francine is expected to move just offshore of Mexico's northern Gulf Coast through Tuesday, then approach the Louisiana and upper Texas coastlines by Wednesday.

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"Francine is expected to bring heavy rainfall and the risk of considerable flash flooding along the coast of far northeast Mexico, portions of the southernmost Texas coast, the Upper Texas Coast, southern Louisiana, and southern Mississippi into Thursday morning. A risk of flash and urban flooding exists across portions of the Mid-South from Wednesday into Friday morning," the hurricane center warned.