Tropical Storm Alberto

He's expected to hit Northwest Florida tomorrow.

TAMPA, Fla. - The first named storm of the 2006 Atlantic hurricane season strengthened slightly in the Gulf of Mexico early Monday, prompting tropical storm warnings for the dry Florida coast.

Tropical Storm Alberto had maximum sustained wind near 50 mph, well below hurricane strength of 74 mph, the National Hurricane Center said.

At 8 a.m., the storm was centered 240 miles south-southwest of Apalachicola and was moving north-northeast at about 8 mph, forecasters said.

Alberto's core wasn't expected to reach Florida until Tuesday, but with tropical storm-force wind stretching 230 miles from the center, powerful gusts may be felt long before it makes landfall. The storm's outer bands brought rain on the state Sunday, and forecasters warned that tornadoes were possible in west-central and northwestern Florida Monday night.

"Right before landfall they expect a little stronger: 55 (mph) gusts to 65 (mph)," said Ron Goodman, a meteorologist at the National Hurricane Center. "Things can change, but right now it's not expected to be a hurricane."

Four to 10 inches of rain could fall on the Florida peninsula through Tuesday, forecasters said.

A tropical storm warning was issued for most of Florida's gulf coast, from Englewood to Indian Pass, meaning tropical storm conditions were expected there within the next 24 hours. A tropical storm watch was in effect from south of Englewood to Bonita Beach.

While not a hurricane, Alberto will do considerable damage to those in its path. Please pray for the residents of Florida who are bracing for this storm.

I'm safe down here in Southeast Florida. We're getting a little bit of rain because of Alberto's size. I'll keep tabs on this storm as progresses. This post will stay at the top of my blog for today.

6:30 p.m. update- 20,000 Florida Residents in the path of Alberto have been ordered to evacuate. The storm could be a minimum hurricane when it comes ashore.

Don't underestimate 75 mph winds and the damage they can do. Residents of Martin and St. Lucie County can tell you what Hurricane Jeanne did two years ago.

Note to Florida bloggers- Any of you blogging on Alberto, feel free to link to me I'll update this post with a link to you. Democrat, Republican, liberal, conservative, I don't care. Just want to know how you're doing out there.

A Cool Change and Bright and Early are blogging on Alberto too.
Open Post- Bright & Early, Third World County, Bloggin Outloud,