First Alert Weather: Sunny and hot today with below-average rain chances

SARASOTA, Fla. (WWSB) - A trough of low pressure aloft over the central Gulf basin and a surface stalled front draped over the deep south will help trigger a few severe storms over north central Florida this afternoon.

Across the Suncoast, our storms will build and drift inland today with some stronger thunderstorms possible, producing mostly gusty winds and downpours. The coast will stay mostly dry with below-average rain chances. Storm motion will be from west to east.

The morning and early afternoon will be mostly sunny with the storms building in the mid-to-late afternoon and becoming more widespread and stronger in Hardee and DeSoto counties. Rain chances along the coast will be about 30% and well east of the interstate as much as 50%.

Hurricane Lee remains a large and powerful storm moving on a path that will take it slowly west-northwest and turning north by midweek. On this track, the storm is expected to remain west of Bermuda in a few days.

Its impact will be felt along the western Atlantic coast all week with hazardous surf and rip current conditions. Eastern Maine and the Canadian maritimes are watching the storm track closely as the cone of uncertainty covers that entire area. However, impacts will likely be felt outside the cone.

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