Florida Bears Down for Alberto

from CNN

Most of Florida's west coast was under a tropical storm watch Sunday as Tropical Storm Alberto spun over the Gulf of Mexico, threatening to bring heavy rain in the next few days. By midday, the first named storm of the 2006 Atlantic hurricane season had maximum sustained wind near 45 mph, up 10 mph from early in the morning, but it was not likely to grow into a hurricane.

Alberto is a lopsided tropical storm with the most intense wind and rains massed on the eastern edge of the system. The first of the storm's rains swept across the Florida peninsula Sunday with no major reports of damage. Forecasters said that 30 inches of rain could fall over the western half of Cuba, creating a threat of flash floods and mudslides, and that 8 inches could fall over the Florida Keys and the state's Gulf Coast.