Tropical Storm Laura Expected To Be Hurricane As It Nears Florida

ACROSS FLORIDA — Tropical Storm Laura has formed in the Atlantic and is expected to strengthen into a hurricane by the time it reaches the Gulf of Mexico.

On Friday, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis sent a letter to President Donald Trump requesting the president declare a pre-landfall emergency in 34 of the state's 67 counties ahead of Laura including Hillsborough, Manatee, Pasco, Pinellas and Sarasota counties.

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration hurricane hunters said Friday that the storm has strengthened and now has maximum sustained winds of around 45 mph.

The storm is located about 230 miles east-southeast of the Leeward Islands.

Laura is the 12th named storm of the 2020 Atlantic Hurricane Season, and the earliest such storm in the official record.

Current models show it near Florida early next week when it is expected to reach hurricane strength by the time it nears Florida.

"Laura could bring storm surge, rainfall and wind impacts to portions of Cuba, the Bahamas and Florida early next week and the northern U.S. Gulf Coast by the middle of next week," the National Hurricane Center said at 5 p.m. Friday.

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