Tropical Storm Nadine set to lash Belize, Mexico with heavy rain just hours after forming
Tropical Storm Nadine is set to drench Belize and southern Mexico with several inches of rain Saturday as the newly-formed storm swirls onshore just hours after becoming named by the National Hurricane Center.
Tropical Storm Warnings stretch from Belize City in Belize to the popular Mexican resorts of Cancun and Cozumel.
Nadine, which was previously designated Potential Tropical Cyclone Fifteen by the NHC, was located just off the coast of Belize early Saturday morning with peak sustained winds of 40 mph.
What is the forecast for Tropical Storm Nadine?
Nadine is expected to move inland over Central America around midday Saturday with gusty winds and heavy rain.
A wind gust reached 51 mph in Cancun as Nadine approached Saturday morning. But while winds won’t be a major factor, Nadine has the potential for destructive flooding.
Widespread rainfall of 5-8 inches is expected across Belize, northern Guatemala, and southern Mexican states from Quintana Roo westward to Veracruz into early next week.
“A couple spots could see up to a foot of rain – not out of the question, especially when you talk about the mountains and the orographic lift across parts of southern Mexico,” Minar said. “But expected to bring some localized areas of flooding, maybe even some mudslides and landslides there.”
The storm will gradually weaken on its trek across northern Guatemala and southeastern Mexico from Saturday afternoon into Saturday night.
“So, this is not a long-lived tropical storm,” said FOX Weather Meteorologist Jane Minar. “In fact, it’s likely going to die off as we get into (Saturday night) as it shifts a lot of that rain in across parts of Central America. Models are all in good agreement that this is going to continue to push across southern Mexico and Central America as this piece of energy, perhaps ending up somewhere in the eastern Pacific.”
The disturbance is no threat to the US. In fact, FOX Weather Hurricane Specialist Bryan Norcross said the hostile atmospheric conditions over the Florida and northern Gulf of Mexico should keep any potential tropical systems from threatening the US for the foreseeable future.
