(WTXL) — Tropical activity continues to increase as the persistent disturbance in the Gulf of Mexico organized enough to become the season's eighth tropical depression late Wednesday.
The system appears ragged and broad, with clouds and moisture stretched across the central and eastern Gulf. Tropical Depression Eight still has max winds of 30 mph and is in the central Gulf of Mexico. It's moving toward the WNW at 9 mph.
It's forecast to make landfall in SE Texas this weekend as a tropical storm. If this develops into a Tropical Storm, the next name on the list is Hanna.
The depression will not cause landfall concerns for the Florida Big Bend. However, offshore waters in Apalachee Bay will be a little choppier, with wave heights reaching six feet at times Thursday.