Gov. DeSantis warns of possible tropical storm that could threaten Florida this weekend

Gov. Ron DeSantis warned Floridians on Wednesday to have plans ready for a brewing storm that could threaten the state this weekend.

“We still are not at the point where we really could, I think, credibly anticipate a trajectory,” DeSantis said Wednesday while in Clearwater. “But I do think it is possible that there are impacts in the state of Florida. And we see those impacts as anywhere from kind of severe storms all the way up to a potential hurricane.”

He added Floridians should secure seven-day supplies of food, water and medicine, “just like you're told to do at the beginning of hurricane season.”

DeSantis’ comments came as the National Hurricane Center continued to show Florida in the forecast “cone” for the system, which has a 90 percent chance of becoming Tropical Storm Isaias over the next couple of days.

RELATED: Florida remains in forecast cone of what could become Tropical Storm Isaias

The hurricane center anticipates heavy rains and possible life-threatening flooding and mudslides across the northern Leeward Islands, the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico, before the system reaches Florida this weekend.

The center said in a late-morning advisory that a ridge is expected to “bring the system near or over Hispaniola on Thursday and near eastern Cuba Thursday night and Friday. The ridge is forecast to weaken by the weekend which should cause a reduction in forward speed. It still must be stressed that since the system lacks a well-defined center and remains in its formative stage, uncertainty in the specifics of the track forecast remain high in both the short and longer range.”

Kelly Godsey, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Tallahassee, said a lot of the tracking could change as the center develops.

“There is quite a bit of uncertainty, and that is why this is a great time for everyone to focus on preparedness activities as we have a storm that could approach our region in the next four to five days,” Godsey said.

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The call for preparedness comes as Floridians also deal with the coronavirus pandemic. But Godsey noted that the pandemic hasn’t reduced operations at the weather service

“While things may look a little different on occasion, with folks working in remote locations, we are still staffing our offices 24 hours a day, seven days a week and making sure we are meeting our mission to inform the public about any system that poses a threat to Florida, the remainder of the United States and in the Atlantic,” Godsey said.

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The News Service of Florida contributed to this report.