Tropical Depression 14 may not have yet graduated to the point where it has received its official name, but on Sunday, Oct. 7, Florida Gov. Rick Scott declared a state of emergency for the Florida Panhandle and Big Bend areas in response to its expected arrival.

“Today, I will be declaring a state of emergency in the Florida Panhandle & Big Bend & directing the State EOC to activate,” Scott tweeted on Sunday morning. “Later today, I will receive a full update & briefing on the forecast & potential impacts of the storm from federal, state & local emergency management.”

“The depression is expected to become a tropical storm later today. The system could become a hurricane by Tuesday night or Wednesday,” the National Hurricane Center said in its 10 a.m. update.

The NHC also confirmed that Tropical Depression 14 is projected to reach the Gulf of Mexico by Wednesday, Oct. 10.

“With the @NHC_Atlantic forecasting Tropical Depression 14 to strengthen and impact Florida’s Panhandle as a hurricane, families need to get prepared,” Scott affirmed.

Spinnaker will continue to keep you updated as more information becomes available.

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