DeSantis issues state of emergency as likely tropical storm forms in Gulf of Mexico

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) issued an executive order Saturday declaring a state of emergency for the state’s Gulf Coast in preparation for an expected tropical storm.

“I signed an Executive Order issuing a state of emergency out of an abundance of caution to ensure that the Florida Division of Emergency Management can begin staging resources and Floridians have plenty of time to prepare their families for a storm next week,” DeSantis said in a statement. “I encourage Floridians to have a plan in place and ensure that their hurricane supply kit is stocked.”

Weather formation Invest 93L has a 90 percent chance of developing into a tropical storm in the next two days, according to the National Hurricane Center. The storm is currently in the Gulf of Mexico between Cuba and Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula.

Early forecasts project the storm to make landfall somewhere on the Florida Gulf Coast approximately between Tampa and Destin, near the Alabama border, by early-to-mid week. The emergency declaration impacts 33 counties in the region.

It is unknown if the storm will strengthen to hurricane forces, but any tropical storm carries the risk of power outages, high winds and flooding.