Hurricane Center Issues Warning as Two Storms Could Merge in Gulf of Mexico

The National Hurricane Center (NHC) on Thursday morning issued a tropical storm warning as a cyclone in the Pacific Ocean is forecast to merge with another disturbance brewing in the Gulf of Mexico.
The Atlantic hurricane season has rapidly ramped up over the past month, with Hurricane Helene making landfall in Florida’s Big Bend region September 26 as a Category 4 hurricane. Helene’s wrath induced devastation across several states, including catastrophic flooding across North Carolina. The punishing storm’s death toll hit 200 at the time of publication, according to the Associated Press.
Meteorologists have recently turned their attention toward the Gulf of Mexico disturbance, which has a 30 percent chance of strengthening into a tropical storm within seven days, per the NHC forecast. In the Pacific, the storm called Tropical Depression Eleven-E is nearing Mexico and expected to slice across the nation before merging with the Gulf system. Tropical storm conditions are expected to begin in Mexico on Thursday and continue into Friday, according to the warning.
The NHC has been monitoring Eleven-E since Monday. After the storm makes landfall, an NHC spokesperson told Newsweek, the system is expected to swiftly decelerate.
“After landfall, the system should quickly weaken, with the remnants eventually becoming absorbed into the large area of disturbed weather that is forming over the western Gulf of Mexico,” the spokesperson said, adding that Eleven-E is set to “dissipate at any time” after it crosses through Mexico’s mountains.
“Regardless of whether intensification occurs, the primary threat remains heavy rainfall that will continue over portions of southern Mexico for the next day or two,” the spokesperson added.
Meteorologists have also been warning about the disturbance in the Gulf merging with the Pacific storm. The Gulf storm has remained disorganized, but should conditions align, the storm could strengthen into a tropical storm or worse and impact the Gulf Coast states. The forecast and timing of that system remain uncertain.
AccuWeather lead hurricane expert Alex DaSilva previously told Newsweek that meteorologists were more concerned about the disturbance in the Gulf last week, but the storm’s energy doesn’t appear as consolidated at the moment, meaning it’s not as likely to become a major hurricane.
Regardless of intensification, the storm in the Gulf is expected to bring heavy rain to Florida, such as in the Tampa Bay area, this weekend. The heavy rain could impede Helene recovery efforts.
Hurricane Kirk and Tropical Storm Leslie have also formed, brewing in the Atlantic Ocean southeast of the U.S. The pair, which are expected to continue strengthening, will remain out at sea.