10 May 2007TBO.com
The low-pressure system that blanketed the Tampa Bay area in a smoky haze strengthened Wednesday into Subtropical Storm Andrea, the first named storm in a hurricane season that isn't supposed to start for three weeks.
As Andrea drifted closer to Florida on Wednesday, its winds pushed west across the Tampa Bay area and eliminated the smoke that draped the area Tuesday. Any hopes that it might douse the fires burning in Florida and Georgia were snuffed by meteorologists who said the storm is expected to stay at sea and is not likely to bring much more than a half-inch of rain to areas of the east coast.
The storm, which formed off Georgia, should remain a weak, disorganized system that forecasters expect to wander slowly southwest, then south toward the Florida.
Andrea is a hybrid mixture of a typical tropical storm and a winter low-pressure system, with the strongest winds and heaviest rains well east of its center. When the storm's winds topped 40 mph Wednesday, the National Hurricane Center gave it a name.
Forecasters at the hurricane center in Miami said the water is too cool for Andrea to gain much strength and that its center should stay offshore before it falls apart by the weekend.
Still, the hurricane center issued a tropical storm watch from Flagler Beach north into Georgia because Andrea could bring winds of 40 mph or more to the coast.
On Wednesday, Andrea had winds of about 45 mph and was moving about 5 mph.
Its winds piled up waves that pounded East Coast beaches from South Carolina to Florida, where tides ran about 2 feet above normal. The main threat from the storm is likely to be heavy surf, beach erosion and rip currents, the National Weather Service in Jacksonville said.
Though experts predict another highly active hurricane season, the early arrival of the season's first storm is not an indication of how many storms will appear in 2007, Weather Service spokesman Greg Romano said.
Beyond that, Andrea may give a tiny boost to rain chances for the Bay area, said Nick Petro, a National Weather Service meteorologist.
"Without Andrea there would be little or no chance of rain," Petro said. With the added moisture from Andrea, rain chances for the rest of the week are about 20 percent.
"It doesn't seem to be a big weather maker for us," Petro said.
Likewise, Andrea shouldn't do much good or much bad for the state's embattled firefighters, said Jim Harrell, Florida Division of Forestry spokesman.
It won't bring heavy rain to douse fires but also isn't expected to increase winds that could spread the fires.
"Our meteorologist told us it wasn't going to do much either way," Harrell said.
On Wednesday there were 213 active wildfires across Florida covering 78,000 acres.
In Hillsborough County, the Division of Forestry fought four fires on Wednesday, each covering a few acres.
Wildfires will continue to be a threat until summer rains begin.
"We're looking at … another two or three weeks before the normal start of the rainy season - if it starts on time. We're stretched thin," Harrell said.
Reporter Neil Johnson can be reached at (352) 544-5214 or [email protected].
