Tropical Storm Eta Could Become A Hurricane, Dousing Florida With A Foot Of Rain

Tropical Storm Eta will brush the southern coast of Florida on Sunday before regrouping in the Gulf of Mexico and heading back toward the state.

National Hurricane Center

Updated 1:34 a.m. ET Monday

Tropical Storm Eta made landfall late Sunday in the Florida Keys. The southern part of the state faces a potential one-two punch from Eta, which could strengthen into a hurricane and drop up to a foot of rain before retreating to the Gulf of Mexico to gather strength for round two.

The National Hurricane Center says Eta had maximum sustained winds of 65 mph on Sunday night and was centered about 30 miles east-northeast of Marathon, Fla., and 70 miles east-northeast of Key West. It was moving west-northwest at 14 mph.