Tropical Storm Sara has formed in the western Caribbean

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Tropical Storm Sara formed Thursday afternoon in the western Caribbean.

As of the 4 p.m. advisory, Sara had winds of 40 mph and was moving west at 10 mph.

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• Sara is the 18th named storm of the 2024 Atlantic Hurricane Season.
• Sara will bring 1-2 feet of rain to portions of Central America.
• Flash flooding and mudslides look likely in Honduras through the weekend.
• Sara will then move near Belize and the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico.
• The more land interaction that occurs, the weaker the system will be.
• The exact strength depends on the exact track, which is still to be determined.
• Some forecast scenarios completely dissipate Sara in the Gulf of Mexico.
• These scenarios would bring some rain and wind to the local area.
• There is still a lot to work out, but at this time, Sara does not appear to be a big hit for Florida.

LISTEN: Mike Buresh ‘All the Weather, All the Time’ Podcast

First Alert Chief Meteorologist Mike Buresh said most of the models have trended faster with the tropical cyclone in the longer range possibly near or over Florida or the Gulf Coast by Wednesday of next week but very slow before that near or over Central America.

It’s still early, but Buresh said the bottom line is anyone in the Western Caribbean, Yucatan Peninsula, Western Cuba, Gulf Coast & Florida needs to stay up to date on the latest forecasts. Exactly how this situation unfolds is still very much up in the air.

For the latest updates, read the latest “Talking the Tropics With Mike.”

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Mike Buresh | Garrett Bedenbaugh | Corey Simma | Trevor Gibbs

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