Tropical Storm Nate has formed off the coast of Nicaragua and is on a forecast track that shows it eventually approaching the U.S. Gulf Coast and moving into north Georgia in the next few days.
Nate's maximum sustained winds Thursday morning were near 40 mph, and the U.S. National Hurricane Center says strengthening is likely as the storm moves over the northwestern Caribbean Sea Thursday night and Friday.
Early Thursday, the storm was centered about 10 miles south Puerto Cabezas, Nicaragua, and is moving northwest near 8 mph.
The National Weather Service in Peachtree City says Georgia is likely to feel the effect of Nate, in the form of "heavy rain and gusty winds," starting this weekend. What's left of the storm is expected to move through north Georgia - including the Gainesville area - on Monday.
(AccessWDUN's Ken Stanford contributed to this report.)
