Tropical storm Fred heads for Gulf Coast

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This satellite image provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) shows a Tropical Storm Fred in the Caribbean at 8am EST, Wednesday Associated Press/NOAA/NESDIS/STAR GOES

Tropical storm Fred heads for Gulf Coast

Fred regained its tropical storm status early on Sunday as it prepared to make landfall on the Florida Panhandle late on Monday. Florida declared a state of emergency across the region, while Alabama remained watchful as it anticipates powerful winds.

How severe could it get? The Florida Big Bend and Panhandle area could see up to 12 inches of rain in some areas. Forecasters expect heavy downpour and flash flood risk to at least six states in the southeast, as well as several inches of rain as far north as Pennsylvania. Fred had weakened to a depression last week as it passed over Haiti and Dominican Republic, where it knocked out power for about 300,000 people.

Dig deeper: Track the progress of the storm on the National Hurricane Center.

Onize Ohikere

Onize is WORLD’s Africa reporter and deputy global desk chief. She is a World Journalism Institute graduate and earned a journalism degree from Minnesota State University–Moorhead. Onize resides in Abuja, Nigeria.

@onize_ohiks