Tropical Storm Nicole weakened after making landfall on Thursday in the southern US state of Florida, where mandatory evacuation orders were issued in three counties.
"Nicole makes landfall on Florida’s east coast south of Vero Beach"indicated the US National Hurricane Center (NHC) in a short statement released at 08:00 GMT.
After making landfall, Nicole weakened from a Category 1 hurricane to a tropical storm, the NHC added in a separate statement an hour later.
Nicole, with sustained winds maximum of 110 kilometers per hourpassed through the Bahamas on its way to the Atlantic coast of Florida and it was unknown at the moment if it caused damage in that archipelago.
tropical storm is an unusual phenomenon At this time of year and it comes a few weeks after Hurricane Ian, one of the most powerful to hit the United States, swept through Florida causing serious damage and more than 100 deaths in the state.
Authorities have issued a hurricane watch for Florida’s east coast from the city of Boca Raton to the border between Flagler and Volusia counties, the NHC said.
Four Florida counties also activated mandatory evacuation orders, according to the state’s Division of Emergency Management.
In all, 45 of the state’s 67 counties were under a state of emergency, Gov. Ron DeSantis said.
NASA launch postponed
Nicole heads towards the Kennedy Space Center, located near the city of Orlando (eastern Florida), from where the SLS mega-rocket, the most powerful in NASA history, will be launched.
NASA said Tuesday that it has again postponed sending its unmanned mission to the Moon, this time because of Nicole.
The launch attempt, initially scheduled for November 14, is now planned for November 16, Jim Free, a senior US space agency official, said on Twitter.
"Adjusting our launch date for Artemis 1 puts employee safety first and allows our team to serve the needs of their families and homes."wrote Free, NASA’s associate administrator for exploration systems development.
NASA said it will leave the SLS rocket on the launch pad, where it had been placed several days ago. After two attempts release canceled due to technical issuesthe 98-meter-high rocket had to be returned to the assembly building to protect it from Hurricane Ian.
The cost of the rocket, which has never taken off, is estimated at several billion dollars.
Tropical Storm #Nicole Advisory 13A: Nicole Now Centered Over Central Florida. Strong Winds, Dangerous Storm Surge and Waves, and Heavy Rains Continue Over a Large Area. https://t.co/tW4KeFW0gB
— National Hurricane Center (@NHC_Atlantic) November 10, 2022