Francine was upgraded to a Category 2 hurricane late this afternoon. As the hurricane moved inland, it's expected to significantly weaken. But Francine's broad circulation will affect parts of the panhandle over the next day or so.
Isolated tornadoes and flooding are the primary concerns. But there could be some minor storm surge inundation along the coastal counties, which will reach its peak early Thursday morning.
Over the last few days Francine deflected slightly to the east of most of the guidance and that shift, to the east, has brought larger impacts to Northwest Florida. Right now, areas south of Tallahassee through Apalachicola westward over to Panama City and to just east of Pensacola will see the greatest impacts. There is a 2 out of 5 risk or a slight risk for tornadoes through Thursday.
Deadly rip currents are occurring along all of the Panhandle through Friday. And surf heights will be building 7-10 feet through Thursday. Some beach erosion is also possible.
Life-threatening high surf and rip currents will increase Wed and peak on Thu. Minor coastal flooding and beach erosion is possible along the Emerald Coast, with 1-2 feet inundation of normally dry ground near the shore at high tide. #FLwx pic.twitter.com/OwPCeuhDFS
— NWS Tallahassee (@NWSTallahassee) September 10, 2024
The Florida Panhandle can expect between 4 to 6 inches of rain for areas from Carrabelle west to the FL/AL border. The rest of the Panhandle will see between 1 to 3 inches of rain. Much of the Panhandle west of Tallahassee has a slight chance of flash flooding. If Francine nudges a little more east before landfall, that could increase the impacts in the panhandle. Make sure to keep up to date with Francine’s forecast over the next few days.
Many parts of the Gulf coast are still recovering from an incredibly wet past 2 weeks as a front remains stalled over northern Florida. Any additional accumulations over the next few days could create some localized flooding.