Cyclone's Chances of Hitting Texas Increase—NHC Tracker Map
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The likely path of a disturbance, increasingly expected to develop into a cyclone, has encroached on Texas in recent days, National Hurricane Center (NHC) tracker maps show.
The chances of Invest 98L—a disturbance over the western Gulf that forecasters are monitoring for possible development—strengthening into a cyclone have increased by 30 percent since Wednesday, according to the NHC.
In an early-morning update on Friday, the agency said the disturbance at 50 percent chance of formation through 48 hours, with the same probability through seven days.
This was a notable increase since Wednesday, when the agency gave the system a 20 percent chance of development.
Updates from the NHC this week showed the disturbance moving along the east coast of Mexico, towards Texas' southern tip.
National Hurricance Center's tracker maps show Invest 98L's possible path moving over Texas in recent days.
National Hurricance Center's tracker maps show Invest 98L's possible path moving over Texas in recent days.
National Hurricance Center
The NHC said that, regardless of development, heavy rain would be possible along for parts of northeastern Mexico and southern Texas in the coming days.
As of early Friday, the National Weather Service (NWS) had issued a flood watch for parts of Deep South Texas, including Cameron Island, Coastal Cameron, Inland Cameron and Southern Hidalgo.
"While there is a higher than usual degree of uncertainty with the evolution of Invest 98L, there is the potential for organized convection to impact somewhere across the Lower Texas Coast," the NWS said.
"The resultant heavy rainfall could lead to possible isolated to scattered urban poor drainage flooding across Cameron and Southern Hidalgo counties today."
More to follow.
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