LAGUNA BEACH, Fla. — A weakened subtropical Storm Alberto made landfall Monday afternoon in the Florida Panhandle, threatening the Southeast with flooding as it is expected to spread moisture across the region into the middle of the week. The storm’s winds continued to slow down throughout Monday, reaching maximum sustained winds of 45 mph as it made landfall in Laguna Beach, west of Panama City on the northern Gulf Coast, according to the National Hurricane Center. The National Hurricane Center in Miami said in an advisory issued at 8 a.m. EDT that the storm's center was located about 100 miles (165 kilometers) south-southeast of Destin, Florida, and moving north at 6 mph (9 kph).Maximum sustained winds were clocked at 65 mph (100 kph). In Polk County, North Carolina, news anchor Mike McCormick and photojournalist Aaron Smeltzer, of Greenville, South Carolina-based CNN affiliate WYFF, were killed Monday in a weather-related incident when a tree fell on their SUV as they covered a story about the rain, the station said. A Tropical Storm Warning is in effect for the northern Gulf Coast from the Aucilla River to the Alabama-Florida border, the National Hurricane Center said in its 5 p.m. Forecasters warned that heavy downpours from the weakening system could raise the potential for life-threatening flash floods in coming hours or days across north Florida, much of Alabama and large areas of Georgia — and eventually into Tennessee and the Carolinas. The main threat is from heavy rain that could lead to flooding, the city said, but also high winds and storm surge could cause problems. John Cangialosi, a hurricane specialist at the National Hurricane Center, said, “Given the short period of time before Alberto makes landfall, its overall ragged appearance, and proximity to dry air, little change in strength is expected before the subtropical storm reaches the coast."
Subtropical Storm Alberto, the first named Atlantic storm of 2018, makes landfall on the west coast of Florida, United States.