Theta becomes record-breaking 29th named storm of 2020 hurricane season

Subtropical storm Theta formed in the Northeast Atlantic on Monday night, becoming the 29th named storm of this hurricane season, which breaks a record.

The system was packing winds of 50 mph Monday night and was tracking east at 15 mph, according to the National Hurricane Center.

If there was a dose of good news, it was that Theta was not threatening land and no warnings or watches were in place late Monday.

The previous record for named storms was set in 2005.

Subtropical Storm #Theta Advisory 1: Subtropical Storm Forms Over the Open Northeast Atlantic. Record-Breaking 29th Named Storm of the Season. https://t.co/VqHn0u1vgc
— National Hurricane Center (@NHC_Atlantic) November 10, 2020

Theta’s formation comes as Tropical Storm Eta continued to move into the southeastern Gulf of Mexico on Monday.

Eta’s massive wind field stretched 310 miles from its center and covered the lower half of Florida on Monday, bringing wind and rain as far north as the Tampa Bay area. Much of southern Florida has already seen more than 10 inches of rain, according to the hurricane center.

But as forecast models for the storm’s path diverged, the Hurricane Center lifted tropical storm warnings on Monday that had stretched around the peninsula to the Gulf coast as far north as Manatee County.

As of 7 p.m. Monday, the storm was moving toward the southwest at 14 mph and was expected to slow through the night. The tropical storm was expected to remain over the southeastern Gulf of Mexico through Wednesday.

In Tampa Bay, winds from Eta were strong enough to force the closure Monday morning of the Sunshine Skyway bridge. It reopened just before 1 p.m.

Read the full report on Eta here.

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