Alberto maintains strength as it approaches US Gulf Coast

MIAMI BEACH, Fla. (AP): Subtropical Storm Alberto was headed toward anticipated landfall sometime Monday on the northern Gulf Coast, where white sandy beaches emptied of their usual Memorial Day crowds.

And just as the long holiday weekend marked summer’s unofficial start in the U.S., Alberto gave it the unofficial start of what forecasters recently predicted would be an active hurricane season.

The National Hurricane Center in Miami said at 11 a.m. EDT Monday that Alberto was maintaining its strength as it approached the Florida Panhandle and was centred about 50 miles south of Panama City, Florida.

The storm that was expected to make landfall later Monday had maximum sustained winds of 60 miles per hour or 95 kilometre per hour and was moving north at 8 miles per hour or 13 kilometre per hour.

Forecasters warned of life-threatening surf conditions, the possibility of a few brief tornadoes in much of Florida and parts of Georgia, South Carolina, and Alabama. And, it said, heavy rains are also expected in many areas.

“Given the short period of time before Alberto makes landfall, its overall ragged appearance, and proximity to dry air, little change in strength is expected before the subtropical storm reaches the coast,” said John Cangialosi, a hurricane specialist at the hurricane center.

Once Alberto is inland and deprived of the warm waters that fuel tropical weather systems, the storm was expected to steadily weaken. 

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