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The National Hurricane Center said at 4:30 p.m. Friday, July 4 that the system is located about 100 miles off the northeast Florida coast and is now called Tropical Depression Three.
If it becomes a tropical storm, which could happen on Saturday, July 5, it will be named Chantal.
An Air Force Reserve Hurricane Hunter aircraft determined its winds to be 35 miles per hour.
A Tropical Storm Watch has been issued for parts of South Carolina, where it is expected to make landfall on Sunday afternoon, July 6. (See the first image above.)
The system is expected to bring heavy rain to parts of west-central and southwestern Florida through Saturday, with impacts spreading to coastal areas of the Carolinas by Saturday night.
Forecasters say winds could pick up along the coast as barometric pressure drops and circulation tightens. Rough surf and higher seas are likely from the Florida coast to the Outer Banks through the long holiday weekend.
The zone has been on meteorologists’ radar since mid-June.
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