From The Associated Press
Here are the latest developments on tropical weather:
MIAMI — A new tropical depression has formed in the Gulf just hours after Hurricane Sally left.
The National Hurricane Center in Miami reported Thursday evening that Tropical Depression 22 had formed over the southwestern Gulf and was forecast to move slowly over the western Gulf into next week.
There was no threat to land as of Thursday night, but the center says the depression could become a tropical storm on Friday.
The depression had maximum sustained winds of 35 mph (56 kph) and was located Thursday night about 230 miles (370 kilometers) east of Tampico, Mexico, and about 330 miles (531 kilometers) southeast of the the mouth of the Rio Grande. The storm is moving about 5 mph (8 kph).
Hurricane Sally rolled through the area Wednesday with 105 mph (165 kph) winds, a surge of seawater and 1 to 2 1/2 feet (0.3 to 0.8 meters) of rain in many places. Hundreds of people were trapped by floodwaters and had to be rescued Thursday by emergency workers using high-water vehicles and personal watercraft.
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MONTGOMERY — Though Hurricane Sally has passed, officials in Alabama and Florida are warning that the disaster isn’t over yet.
Alabama Emergency Management Agency Director Brian Hastings said Thursday morning that inland flooding remains a concern. He says flooding continues to be a problem in the state’s southern counties and they expect many rivers to be in moderate or major flood state at noon and continuing through the weekend.
In Florida, Escambia County Emergency Management Manager Eric Gilmore warned “we are not out of the woods yet,” noting the dangers from cresting rivers.
Sally sloshed ashore Wednesday morning on the Gulf Coast as a Category 2 hurricane. It has since weakened to a tropical depression.