Tropical Storm Nicole heads toward Florida
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — Tropical Storm Nicole continues to strengthen east of Florida as it moves closer to the Sunshine State.
Earlier Tuesday, the system successfully transitioned from a subtropical storm to a tropical storm.
At the 4 p.m. Tuesday advisory, Nicole had maximum sustained winds of 65 mph, which is just short of hurricane strength. Sustained winds from 74-95 mph are a Category 1 hurricane.
Further strengthening is expected as the tropical storm will potentially become a Category 1 hurricane before making landfall Wednesday night in east Florida into early Thursday. That is why hurricane warnings have been issued for eastern sections of Florida. Heavy rainfall can be expected from Nicole on Wednesday and Thursday across the Florida peninsula.
Hurricane landfalls are quite rare in Florida during November. Only two hurricanes have made landfall in the last 100 years in Florida during this month: Kate in 1985, and Yankee in 1935. It’s been a while since Florida’s eastern coast in general has dealt with a landfalling hurricane. The last one to do so was Hurricane Katrina in 2005.
