Storm Fred, which was raging across the Gulf of Mexico on Saturday, was expected to gain momentum and evolve into a tropical storm overnight. The impact of storm Fred gaining strength is likely to be felt in areas of Florida and southern parts of Alabama by early next week, according to media reports.

According to data released by the United States National Hurricane Center’s branch in Florida’s Miami, storm Fred was nearly 510 miles off Alabama was moving in the western direction at a speed of 35 miles per hour.

The National Hurricane Center released an advisory on Saturday warning about a potential turn that could be taken by the storm, which carries a 90% chance of gaining momentum and evolve into a tropical storm, according to reports from Reuters.

“Fred is forecast to regenerate as a tropical cyclone over the Gulf of Mexico tonight or on Sunday, and bring a risk of tropical storm conditions to portions of the northern Gulf coast, especially from coastal Mississippi to the Florida Panhandle beginning on Monday”, the National Hurricane Center said in a statement, according to reports from Reuters.

About 3 to 7 inches of rain is expected to fall from the skies over Florida’s Big Bend and Panhandle by Tuesday next week. Media reports suggest that the maximum isolated totals can amount to nearly 10 inches of precipitation. 

Storm Fred ravaged across the Dominican Republic earlier this week and left thousands of residents of the state without the supply of running water and electricity. The storm also grazed past the country of Cuba on Thursday before making its way towards the Gulf of Mexico, according to reports from Reuters.

The National Emergency Operations Center of the Dominican Republic announced that the reason for the loss of supplies was high-speed winds and rain. The natural disaster left nearly 41 communities in the country isolated.