Tropical Storm Arlene forms on second day of hurricane season, poses no threat locally

Tropical Storm Arlene has formed in the eastern Gulf of Mexico on the second day of the 2023 hurricane season.

Hurricane hunters flew into the storm system Friday morning and reported back that a tropical depression had strengthened into a name storm with winds at 40 mph.

The storm poses no threat to Louisiana at this time. It is expected to drift southward and weaken. At some point Saturday, it’s expected to just be a low-pressure system.

Tropical Depression Two has been upgraded to Tropical Storm #Arlene in the Gulf of Mexico. No change to the forecast and no significant threat to land. See https://t.co/tW4KeGe9uJ for details. pic.twitter.com/VCKrb9BHwp

— National Hurricane Center (@NHC_Atlantic) June 2, 2023

Shortly before 1 p.m., the National Hurricane Center placed the center of the storm at 26.7 north latitude and 86.2 west longitude, or 400 miles to the southeast of Baton Rouge. 

The main threat from Arlene is the possibility of heavy rain in the central and southern Florida Peninsula. Generally, 1 to 2 inches of rain are possible, but there could be up to 5 inches in isolated areas.