Special Tropical Storm Ian Travel & RV Weather Forecast Saturday p.m. 24 September

** Heads Up ** RVers in or traveling to Florida’s Gulf Coast need to stay aware of Tropical Storm Ian, now in the Caribbean Sea and strengthening. There will likely be evacuations early next week, and significant storm surge, flooding and wind impacts on parts of Florida’s Gulf Coast from this hurricane-to-be.

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Tropical Storm Ian:

— Tropical Storm Ian is south of Jamaica this evening, moving to the west and strengthening. Ian will likely became a hurricane by late Sunday evening as it turns to the northwest over the tip of western Cuba and enters the Gulf of Mexico.

There is still considerable uncertainty (higher than normal) on where Ian will make landfall along the Gulf Coast the middle of next week; as of Saturday evening it could be anywhere from Pensacola to Tampa Bay.  The guidance today has shifted more to the west, so the danger to the Florida Keys has decreased, while the threat to the Panhandle has increased.  The National Weather Service has started to take special weather observations that hopefully will make the storm's forecast track more certain in the coming days.

RVers along Florida’s west coast should closely monitor this storm.  If you have plans to travel to the Keys, check with your campground and the Monroe County Emergency Management site to ensure you can still come.
RVers along the Gulf Coast of Florida:  Expect Tropical Storm force winds to impact the coast from south to north starting on Tuesday and reaching the Panhandle by Wednesday.  The greatest risk for hurricane force winds is from the Big Bend southward to Tampa Bay.

All indications are this will be a strong hurricane when Ian makes landfall the latter part of this week.  In addition to winds, flooding and storm surge will be significant.  Expect infrastructure along the immediate path of the hurricane, especially along the coast, to be disrupted for days and weeks.  If you travel to the west coast of Florida this week, you may be required to evacuate on short notice.  If you are already RVing on the coast, have your evacuation plan ready to go and follow the directions of your local emergency management officials.

Severe Weather and Tropical Watches and Warnings

— See https://rvweather.com/warnings-watches-and-advisories/#NHC_Hurricane_Advisory for the latest WARNINGS and information on Tropical Storm Ian.

— See https://rvweather.com/warnings-watches-and-advisories/#SPC_Tornado_Watch for the latest Tornado and Severe Thunderstorm WATCHES

— See https://rvweather.com/warnings-watches-and-advisories/#NWS_Tornado_Warning for the latest Tornado, Severe Thunderstorm, and Flash Flood WARNINGS.

Chance of 60 mph or greater sustained winds. Most of the Florida West Coast is > 20%
A graphic that shows the spread or difference in the location of Ian from the various forecast models, by the time it makes landfall on the Florida Coast. This is a larger spread than normal.