Storm tracker: Francine expected to dissipate Friday; another tropical storm could form

Francine is expected to dissipate Friday but not before bringing heavy rainfall and a flash flood threat to portions of the Tennessee Valley and Southeast, the National Hurricane Center said Friday morning.

From Friday morning through Sunday, rainfall amounts of 3 to 6 inches, with isolated totals around 8 inches, are forecast across portions of central and northern Alabama, the NHC said, with additional rainfall of 2 to 4 inches expected across portions of northeast Mississippi, western Tennessee, western Georgia and the Florida Panhandle.

Francine made landfall along the Louisiana coast as a Category 2 hurricane Wednesday night before being downgraded to a tropical storm. The system has weakened over the last couple of days and is now a post-tropical cyclone with maximum sustained winds of nearly 25 mph with higher gusts, according to the NHC.

There were no fatalities reported in Louisiana as of Thursday afternoon, Gov. Jeff Landry said at a news conference.

Francine live updates: Francine weakens after leaving trail of flooding, wind damage in Louisiana

Tropical Depression Seven could become Tropical Storm Gordon

While Francine is expected to dissipate Friday, another tropical storm could be forming in the Atlantic.

Tropical Depression Seven, currently located about 955 miles west-northwest of the Cabo Verde Islands, could become Tropical Storm Gordon Friday, however "little change in strength overall is anticipated through the weekend," according to the NHC.

A turn toward the west is forecast by Friday night, according to the hurricane center, with the system "gradually slowing down through the weekend."

NHC tracking two other disturbances in the Atlantic Ocean

The NHC is also tracking a "small area of low pressure" over the northern Leeward Islands, forecasters said in an advisory Friday morning.

The system is producing showers and thunderstorms, however environmental conditions, including the proximity of dry air, "do not favor development of this system" as it moves west-northwestward, the NHC said. The system has a 20 percent chance of formation through the next seven days, according to the hurricane center.

Elsewhere in the Atlantic, a "non-tropical area of low pressure" could form a frontal boundary a few hundred miles off the southeastern U.S. coastline this weekend, the NHC said.

"Some subtropical or tropical development is possible during the early part of next week while the system moves generally northwestward toward the coast," according to the NHC.

Atlantic storm tracker

Tropical Depression Seven spaghetti models

Spaghetti model illustrations include an array of forecast tools and models, and not all are created equal. The Hurricane Center uses only the top four or five highest performing models to help make its forecasts.

Gabe Hauari is a national trending news reporter at USA TODAY. You can follow him on X @GabeHauari or email him at [email protected].

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Storm tracker: Francine to weaken, Tropical Storm Gordon may develop