Tropical Storm Arlene in the Gulf of Mexico is churning up some heavy rain, becoming the first named storm of the 2023 Atlantic hurricane season.
The storm is defying normal expectations, as there are normally no systems spawned in the northern Gulf this early in the Atlantic hurricane season, which began Thursday and runs through Nov. 30.
But that's exactly what's happening. The National Hurricane Center said Arlene is spinning off the Florida Gulf Coast with top winds of 40 mph.
It's expected to reach Cuba by Sunday, but the National Hurricane Center expects it to dissipate into a remnant low before making it there.
However, Arlene is not the only cause for concern in current weather developments.
In the Southwest, all the energy from a pressure system moving in from Mexico is heading toward Texas, and it will intensify Friday afternoon and likely spin up some tornadoes. People in that area should look out for severe weather alerts for large hail and likely tornadoes from Amarillo south through Lubbock, Midland and Odessa, Texas, and all the way to the Rio Grande.
This severe weather threat is expected to dissipate over the weekend, but the rain will linger across most of western Texas and Florida.
Unexpected weather in parts of the US as summer season approaches
Amid the typically cooler months of spring and the upcoming expected warmer months of summer have been some unexpected weather patterns.
