Winds Blowing Across Florida Will Trigger Coastal Impacts

An area of strong winds coming in from the Atlantic Ocean will work to create a buffer around Florida and mitigate the chances of more tropical weather for the storm-weary state. Here is a look at this protection from the elements, as well as the side effects of the stiff breezes.

Stiff Winds Will Generate Protection from Tropical Weather for Florida

It has been a rough month for the state of Florida. Two major hurricane strikes have battered much of the peninsula with more tropical weather brewing in the Caribbean this week. However, forecasters are offering hope that the Sunshine State will remain protected from the elements in the week ahead thanks to an influx of stiff winds coming in from the Atlantic.

Winds coming from the northwest were serving to send water away from the Atlantic coastline earlier in the week. That pattern has been the result of a large area of high pressure that is starting to set up over the eastern half of the country. This high pressure zone will usher in cooler temperatures and low humidity levels for the southeastern corner of the U.S. through the weekend.

The mercury will dip to the lowest levels since last spring across much of the interior Southeast and down into northern and central Florida. This same weather pattern is responsible for the freezing temperatures that are impacting parts of the western edge of North Carolina still without power in the wake of Hurricane Helene.

The area of high pressure will move to the east and generate winds blowing from the Atlantic basin and across Florida. The shift of the winds will continue to increase through Friday.

This zone of high pressure and its resulting winds will work as a buffer for Florida, steering any potential tropical weather activity away from the peninsula. Any action that tries to sneak up into this region will likely break apart as the breezes act as wind shear.

This is good news as a tropical rainstorm is brewing in the Caribbean. This feature is forecast to move into the northern portions of the Caribbean Sea through early next week, bringing torrential rain and high winds to the islands of this part of the basin.

A second area of developing rain showers and thunderstorms is trying to pick up steam over the western Caribbean. This cluster of activity is predicted to move to the west and impact Central America instead of sneaking to the north and into the Gulf of Mexico.

Despite the good news for Florida, forecasters are warning that the rainstorm in the northern Caribbean could potentially intensify to the point that it is able to overpower the wind shear. This would result in the system making a run to the northwest and toward Florida. At this point, there are no signals that the feature will be able to undergo the process of rapid intensification as Helene and Milton were able to do.

Flipside of the Winds

While these winds will form a bubble over Florida to repel tropical weather circulating in the Caribbean, the consistent breezes will also have a negative impact. The winds will stir up the seas, causing rough surf conditions, higher tides, coastal flooding, and minor beach erosion. Beach goers will also want to be aware of the high potential of dangerous rip currents.

The winds will ebb and flow over the next few days up and down the Atlantic coastline of Florida and into the Southeast. The persistent nature of these winds will translate to water building up in the tidal rivers and back bays coming into Florida.