Tropical Storm Isaias formed early Wednesday morning in the Gulf of Mexico and is expected to strengthen into a Category 3 hurricane by Thursday, says forecasters with the National Hurricane Center.
According to the NHC’s 5 a.m. advisory report, the eye of Isaias is about 285 miles west of Progreso, Mexico moving east-northeast at 8 MPH, with maximum sustained winds of 40 MPH.
The storm is expected to grow into the Atlantic’s first hurricane of the 2026 season, and will likely impact portions of the Gulf Coast beginning Thursday evening. Isaias is expected to turn north before making landfall near the Panhandle late Friday night into early Saturday morning, and feature sustained winds of at least 110 MPH.
Hurricane watches will likely be issued later Wednesday for portions of the Gulf Coast, says the NHC.
On Tuesday night, Gov. Ron DeSantis signed an executive declaring a state of emergency for 25 Florida counties in advance of a rapidly developing tropical depression heading toward northwest Florida.
“Impacts are expected to extend beyond the point of landfall, with heavy rainfall, strong winds, coastal flooding, and isolated tornadoes possible across North Florida,” said DeSantis in the order. “Additional precipitation could further saturate soils and increase the potential for flash flooding following the state’s recent significant rainfall.”
The state of emergency is in effect for Baker, Bay, Calhoun, Columbia, Dixie, Escambia, Franklin, Gadsden, Gilchrist, Gulf, Hamilton, Holmes, Jackson, Jefferson, Lafayette, Leon, Liberty, Madison, Okaloosa, Santa Rosa, Suwannee, Taylor, Walton, Wakulla, and Washington counties.
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This article appears in Oct. 01 – 07, 2026.
