The National Weather Service has issued tropical storm and storm surge advisories for the east coast of Florida as Subtropical Storm Nicole approaches the state.
Nicole may be as strong as a hurricane when it hits Florida's east coast later this week, according to the National Weather Service.
The storm might have an influence on election week in Florida, where Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis is competing against Democratic opponent Charlie Crist and Rep. Val Demings, D-Fla., is attempting to topple Republican Sen. Marco Rubio.
While it does not look that this storm will develop much stronger at this time, I advise all Floridians to be prepared," he added in a statement.
Florida Power & Light is urging customers to prepare for power outages and has activated its emergency response plan ahead of Nicole's potential impact on the state this week.
Nicole could force trees to tumble down and other plants and debris to blow against overhead power lines and equipment because Ian waterlogged soil and weakened trees in several regions of the state.
Nicole developed on Monday in the southwestern Atlantic Ocean, becoming the 14th named storm of the 2022 Atlantic hurricane season, which concludes this month. On Tuesday, Nicole's centre will reach the northern Bahamas.
Nicole wields maximum sustained winds of about 45 miles per hour, with higher gusts. Winds of 40 mph or greater extend outward up to 275 miles to the east of the storm's center.