South Florida Sun Sentinel from Fort Lauderdale, Florida • 18

FROM PAGE ONE SOUTH FLORIDA SUN-SENTINEL 18A Friday, June 10, 2005 NWS lene threateiis to soak Soiith Florida ARLENE'S IMPACT 1 As Tropical Storm Arlene moves north, watch what it does to weather here using local Doppler radar and updates online at Pensacola Beach house in Ivaj, told the Associated Press, have to assume the probabilitiSk are in my favor and it's not gourjg to be a really big, bad thing thjs time." Because of Arlene, the stattj-backed Citizens Property Insurance Corp. suspended writing new insurance policies or making changes to existing policies in Florida as of Thursday. Otherwise, insurance brokers say it doesn't hurt to have policies close by. "I'm prepared," said Ron Kornbluh, an agent with Broker's Insurance in Margate, who purchased hurricane-proof windows for his business. "The kej is to make sure everything is up to date and in order." flooding to western Cuba, Jamaica and the Cayman Islands overnight, forecasters said.

Normally, a tropical storm in early June would inspire a collective yawn in South Florida. But after four hurricanes pounded the state last year, even a disorganized blob like Arlene is causing heightened alert. Capt. Dave Erdman, spokesman for Broward County Fire Rescue, said emergency personnel are preparing for high winds and surf, as well as rip currents. Some residents, hit hard during last year's storms, said they were keeping a close eye.

"We don't want to go through what we went through with Hurricane Jeanne," said Jacque Folk, of Lantana, who already has bought a generator and a saw and stocked up on water and canned goods. "If we had a hurricane tomorrow, we'd be well prepared." Others, like Eileen Klement, of Fort Lauderdale, were less concerned. "I'm not monitoring it," she said. "I'm not in an area where flooding is a problem." In the Florida Panhandle, where hundreds are still trying to recover from Hurricane Ivan's fury, residents appeared to be remaining calm. Jim Milliken, 69, who lost his Storm forecast stay clear tof Gulf Coast tfiY Ken Ka ye 'and Georgia East tSTAFF WRITERS Tropical Storm Arlene likely won't become a hurricane and should aim well west of the state but still poses the threat of rains, flooding and even tornadoes in South Florida to--day and Saturday.

A flood watch was issued for the entire southern tip of the state through 8 p.m. today, as the storm's sloppy outer fringes 'could produce up to 3 inches of train in this region and up to 5 inches along the Gulf Coast, the Rational Weather Service in Mi-amisaid. South Florida is flood-prone "simply because we've had so much rain just this month," meteorologist Rusty Pfost said. Arlene, the first named storm iof the 2005 Atlantic hurricane was expected to make a gray, soupy night over jSouth Florida on Thursday, even though its core was more than 400 miles away in the northwest Caribbean. tZ.

It was forecast to churn north through the Gulf of Mexico and approach the Mississippi or Alabama coast on Saturday, near the same area Hurricane Ivan pounded in September. That track is close enough to South Florida that it could be a troublesome rainmaker and help whip up 30-mph gusts throughout the day today, Pfost said. "We would be in the right front quadrant, and that's a quadrant favored for severe weather," he said, adding that one potential threat is tornadoes. If the storm holds to its track, conditions would start improving by Saturday, but the massive system's outer bands could generate rain through the weekend, forecasters said. If it swings farther from Florida or weakens, this region could see normal summertime rains.

Arlene's center was forecast to be in the Gulf of Mexico, near the west end of Cuba, at 8 a.m. today with maximum winds of about 50 mph. Because it was encountering wind shear, it was not expected to grow any stronger than 60 mph, well below the 74-mph threshold for hurricane strength. A tropical storm warning was posted for the Dry Tortugas, though the Keys also could see ft I ,1. 1 II hi Staff Writers Brian Haas and' Kathy Bushouse contributed to this report Ken Kaye can be reached at JJ or 954-385-7911.

2 WAVE MOTION: Derek Groissl, 14, heads to the beach in Delray Beach on Thursday for some surfing. Seas were expected to build to 6 to 8 feet today. Staff photoGeorge Wilson downpours, said meteorologist Dade County. Dan Brown with the National The system was expected to Hurricane Center in Miami- bring torrential rains and coastal Insurer suspends writing policies Company won't restart until threat of storm passes. Small box.

NSlf Sis Picture '77-- 7 4 By kathy bushouse BUSINESS WRITER State-backed Citizens Property Insurance Corp. suspended writing new insurance policies Thursday as Tropical Storm Arlene the first named storm of the 2005 hurricane season started making her way into the Gulf of Mexico. Citizens, Florida's second-largest homeowner insurer, will hold off writing insurance policies or making changes to existing policies until there are no longer any tropical storm or hurricane watches or warnings anywhere in the state, said company spokesman Justin Glover. This is standard procedure for Citizens. "We cannot be certain of the path the storm will take, as evidenced by Hurricane Charley last year," Glover said.

It was still business as usual for most other insurance companies Thursday. Other companies, such as State Farm Florida, stop writing new policies only in the areas where a tropical storm or hurricane watch or warning are issued. Arlene's projected path into the Pensacola area is creating concern for some state officials after a section of the Florida Panhandle was pummeled last year by Hurricane Ivan. Some of that storm's victims still haven't recovered or rebuilt. The state's Department of Financial Services, which oversees the insurance industry, is already looking at how to dispatch teams to the Panhandle to help people with insurance questions if Arlene hits, said department spokeswoman Ta-mi Torres.

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