Tropical Storm Eta dumps blustery rain on Florida west coast

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Tropical Storm Eta is dumping torrents of blustery rain on Florida’s west coast as it slogs over the state after making landfall north of the heavily populated Tampa Bay area.

The National Hurricane Center in Miami predicts that after coming ashore Thursday morning, Eta will move northeast across Florida.

Eta briefly gained hurricane strength at midweek before weakening to a tropical storm nearing landfall.

There were no immediate reports of injuries or serious damage or flooding in the U.S.

Eta first hit Nicaragua as a Category 4 hurricane, killing at least 120 people in Central America and Mexico before moving into the Gulf of Mexico.