FOXNews.com: MEET ANDREA: First Storm of Season Slams Florida Coast

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MEET ANDREA: First Storm of Season Slams Florida Coast Jun 6th 2013, 18:54 Tropical Storm Andrea drenches Florida's Gulf Coast Florida braces for Tropical Storm Andrea MIAMI –  The first tropical storm of the Atlantic hurricane season, which has already damaged homes and reportedly produced small tornadoes in Florida, is about to reach landfall Thursday afternoon along the state's western coast. Tropical Storm Andrea prompted warnings for a large section of Florida's west coast from Boca Grande to Indian Pass and for the East Coast from Flagler Beach, Fla., all the way to Cape Charles Light in Virginia. Several tornadoes have been reported in the Tampa Bay area, including Myakka City, Sun City Center and Gulfport, MyFoxTampaBay.com reported. The entire Tampa Bay area remains under a tornado watch until 10 p.m. Tropical Storm Andrea's maximum sustained winds increased to near 60 mph and the storm was expected to make landfall in Florida's Big Bend area Thursday afternoon before moving across southeastern Georgia and the Carolinas. It was not expected to strengthen into a hurricane. "The rain covers a good portion of the Florida peninsula even though the center is a couple of hundred miles off shore," said Eric Blake, a hurricane specialist at the U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami. Storm surge would be the biggest threat as the storm comes onshore, Blake said. The Hurricane Center expects a storm surge of 2 to 4 feet "near and to the south" of where the center makes landfall. Raphael Monedero, 34, works at the Broken Egg diner in Manatee County, said the rain and wind gusts would come in spurts throughout the morning. "We've been pretty empty and we're about to close for the day," he told FoxNews.com. The Federal Emergency Management Agency said in a statement that it is in close contact with state, tribal and local officials in Florida and all hurricane prone states to ensure they have the resources they need in preparation for Andrea and for the 2013 hurricane season.   He added that flash flooding was a concern, with 3 to 6 inches of rain expected. Isolated areas in Florida and southeastern Georgia could get 8 inches of rain. Already, the National Weather Service in Tampa confirmed two tornados touched down early Thursday -- one in Myakka City and the other in Sun City Center. Meteorologist Rodney Wynn said there were reports of downed tree limbs and power lines and minor damage to the porch on at least one home. There were no reports of injuries. Wynn said there have also been reports of minor flooding in the area, including along Tampa's Bayshore Drive. Tornado warnings and watches could be issued throughout the day. The storm was expected to hug the coastline, bringing rain as far as the southern New England area through the weekend. As of about 8 a.m. EDT Thursday, the storm was centered about 160 miles west of Tampa and was moving north-northeast near 14 mph. "It looks like it's picking up speed and that's a good thing because it won't sit and rain us so long," said Jan Chamberlain, whose family runs the Blue Heron Inn Bed & Breakfast near the Sapelo Island Ferry station on Georgia's coast Thursday morning. In Florida, Gulf Islands National Seashore closed its campgrounds and the road that runs through the popular beach-front park Wednesday. The national seashore abuts Pensacola Beach and the park road frequently floods during heavy rains. On Pensacola Beach, condominium associations asked people to remove furniture on high balconies because of the expected high winds and beach lifeguards warned tourists of possible high surf. In Alabama, authorities said that 13 people had to be rescued from rough surf kicked up by the storm Wednesday at beaches in two coastal towns. Most of those rescued did not require medical treatment. The Associated Press contributed to this report Click for more from MyFoxTampa.com

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