Tropical Storm Bret is here and has sparked hurricane fears with the possibility a tropical cyclone will devastate the Caribbean before smashing into Florida.
Forecasters predict that the Atlantic storm could batter the Caribbean Islands as soon as Thursday or Friday, then make its way to the Floridian coast.
It has the potential to become the first devastating hurricane of the season, according to the National Hurricane Center in Miami.
"Both the atmospheric and oceanic environment look conducive for strengthening during the next couple of days with low shear and abnormally warm ocean waters," the center said.
Forecasters warned of strong winds, dangerous storm surge and waves, and flooding from heavy rainfall.
They urged people in the Lesser Antilles, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands to closely monitor the storm and have their hurricane plans in place.
The region is rushing to prepare itself for what has been deemed an unusually early storm.
Bret formed on Monday as Depression Three, according to the Cooperative Institute for Research in the Atmosphere, and strengthened into a tropical storm earlier today.
It had maximum sustained winds of 40 mph (65 kph) and was moving across the Atlantic at 17 mph (28 kph).
It is currently about 1,210 miles (1,945km) east of the southern Windward Islands.
If it reaches hurricane status, it will be only the second hurricane to form in the tropical Atlantic in June since record keeping began, according to meteorologist Philip Klotzbach at Colorado State University.
The previous hurricane was Trinidad, which formed in 1933.
Vertical shear and drier air are expected to later weaken Bret as it swirls through the central Caribbean region, potentially taking aim at southern Haiti as a tropical storm.
A tropical disturbance with a 60% chance of cyclone formation is trailing Bret. No June on record has had two storms form in the tropical Atlantic, Klotzbach noted.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has forecast 12 to 17 named storms for this year's hurricane season.
It said between five and nine of those storms could become hurricanes, including up to four major hurricanes of Category 3 or higher.
And those aren't the only severe weather phenomena to batter the Florida panhandle in recent months.
Severe storms brought torrential rain, flooding and tornadoes to parts of southern Alabama and the Florida Panhandle.
Recent videos show possible tornadoes forming near Mirimar Beach and Destin, Florida. The former was under a tornado warning until 12 p.m. yesterday, and the National Weather Service also warned of possible hail.
Showers and thunderstorms are expected to continue overnight.
And with Bret quickly approaching, Floridians are in for a wild weather ride.
