Tropical Storm Debby has departed Florida, with residents coming out of shelters and their sealed-up homes to see the aftermath: and it isn’t pretty.

As National Hurricane Center downgraded Debby from a tropical storm to a post-tropical cyclone, the storm moved out to the Atlantic.

The scene it left behind, reports the Daily Mail, will take weeks to clean up.

And little wonder, for Debby produced rain in excess of two feet in some areas of the sunshine state, while Jacksonville recorded its largest two-day rainfall. Live Oak in northern Florida (from where the image above is taken) might have endured the worst of it. There, water reached the top of houses, and cars were entirely submerged.

As well as destroying homes, roads and more than 100 businesses, Debby was responsible for thousands of civilians losing their power (though this has since been restored) and at least three deaths.

The tropical storm had formed in the Gulf of Mexico on Saturday, before heading for Florida, which endured rain for several days. ‘The water came in so fast last night,’ resident Johnny Torres told the Mail. ‘We were lucky to get out what we could.’

And the problems are far from over: while Debby may have left town, emergency management experts predict the aftermath will continue to cause problems thanks to lakes and rivers becoming swollen with the record rainfall.

Many rivers in the state reached record levels, according to Brian Koon, the director of the Florida Division of Emergency Management (FEMA). The Sopchoppy river, for one, peaked on Wednesday at 36.1 feet. Prior to Debby’s appearance, the river was 8 feet high. Koon estimated:

‘It’s not over. We’ve got a long way to go. We’ll be dealing with flooding for the next week.’

A full damage assessment will be delivered on Friday by FEMA. On the bright side, reports a glass-half-full New York Times, queues at Disney World were non-existent for those who braved the weather.

Tropical Storm Debby Leaves Florida As Residents Survey Aftermath is a post from: The Inquisitr

One of the PGA Tour’s most revered courses has one of the most iconic holes in golf. That would be TPC Sawgrass, which boast the famous island green on hole 17.

CBSsports.com reported that Tropical Storm Debby has dumped more than seven inches of rain on the area, flooding the famous hole, and truly making it an island. Yahoo Sports golf blog Devil Ball reports that the walking path that usually provides access to the 17th at TPC Sawgrass is completely submerged, and with more rain on the way, the whole hole may vanish for a time.

The well-known 17th hole at TPC Sawgrass is less than 140 yards long and consists of nothing but a 78-foot long green and small bunker. Most pros can reach the green in one shot with a pitching wedge — but if the wind is blowing, it can be a challenge.

The Wall Street Journal reports that 120,000 balls annually are lost to the four-foot deep lake that almost entirely surrounds the 17th hole at TPC Sawgrass. The WSJ adds that it has a scoring average in recent years that is only about one-fifth of a stroke higher than the average for par-threes of comparable length.

Course designer Pete Dye didn’t plan on making such a unique hole, but the dirt from that part of the course was needed elsewhere and eventually he had a big empty space. His wife suggested he create the island green and the rest is history.

The Stadium Course where the hole sits was closed for maintenance prior to the flooding, but now all the grounds crew is sit back and wait for the drainage system to do its job and wait for the famous 17th hole at TPC Sawgrass to reemerge in all its glory — that or have a boat ready to ferry players across.

Photo courtesy of Tony Agolini (@tonyagolini on Twitter)

TPC Sawgrass Famous 17th Hole Flooded is a post from: The Inquisitr

Tropical Storm Debby spawns tornados, toddler found alive still clutched in dead mother’s arms.

A Florida toddler was found alive after she and her mother were thrown at least 200 feet when a tornado his the Venus area yesterday. Tropical Storm Debby spawned the tornado which prompted Heather Town, 32, to hold her toddler daughter as tightly as she could and seek cover. Town sadly did not survive the tornado, but even in death she protected her child. The Florida mother’s arms were still clutched tightly around little AnneMarie when neighbors found them in a wooded area, Fox News Tampa Bay reports.

Rescue witness Kim Bass told Fox News that the mother was “literally holding her baby, her little girl,” when the pair was found in a very densely wooded area. AnneMarie was having difficulty breathing possibly due to cracked ribs and had barbed wire wrapped around part of her little body, but she is expected to survive the horrific ordeal. AnneMarie’s grandfather Elmer Town told local news outlets that she has a broken pelvis and broken ribs. He also stated that his daughter’s final act “shows how much she loved her children.” Heather Town has two other children.Town’s mobile home was totally destroyed by the the Florida tornado.

According to the Highlands County Sheriff’s Office, “several” tornadoes moved through the region southeast of Tampa, causing damage to “multiple” homes. Tropical Storm Debby caused power outages to thousands of homes, drenching Florida’s Gulf Coast with heavy rains and flooding. Florida Governor Rick Scott declared a state of emergency yesterday as 10 to 20 inches of rain fell on the Sunshine State, USA Today notes. Tropical Storm Debby boasted winds up to 45 mph.

Florida Toddler Found Alive After Tropical Storm Debby Tornado – Still Clutched In Dead Mother’s Arms is a post from: The Inquisitr

According to the NWS, Debby could bring bring five to 10 inches of rain to the northwest coast of Florida. That brings a threat of flash floods inland to go along with the 1- to 3-foot storm surges Debby is expected to churn up.

“The combination of a storm surge and the tide will cause normally dry areas near the coast to be flooded by rising waters,” the weather service cautioned in a Sunday morning briefing.

As of a 8am EST update Monday, the National Hurricane Center reported that Debby’s top winds are 50 miles (80 kilometers) per hour, down from 60 mph earlier, as the storm sat about 90 miles south- southwest of Apalachicola, Florida.

Earlier, in Florida, a woman was killed and a child was injured when a tornado spawned by Debby hit Venus, in the center of the state. Emergency crews there reported “severe property damage” but they were still assessing the scene. The storm also caused chaos in Alabama, where rescue crews plan to continue searching for a South Carolina man who disappeared in rough surf caused by Debby.

While Tropical Storm Debby’s projected path has moved away from Louisiana and toward northwestern Florida, experts say the storm’s exact track is still difficult to pinpoint.

The NHC’s current forecast calls for a possible Panhandle landfall on June 29 with drenching rains, coastal flooding and isolated tornadoes.

“People are going to hate Debby in a couple of days,” said News 9 meteorologist Brian McClure. “They’re going to really hate this tropical storm.”

MSNBC has more on Tropical Storm Debby’s projected path in the video below:

Tropical Storm Debby Brings Heavy Rains, Flooding to Florida’s Gulf Coast [Video] is a post from: The Inquisitr

Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal has declared a state of emergency as Tropical Storm Debby moves into the states low-lying coastal areas.

The move to declare a state of emergency is a bureaucratic move that will allow officials to quickly offer supplies and workers to any areas that are hit by the storm and require disaster assistance.

While Debby is moving slowly through the Gulf of Mexico is has already dumped plenty of water on Florida. It is not clear where the tropical storm will touch down although current models believe it will reach hurricane strength by the time it reaches the Louisiana coastline.

On Sunday morning the National Hurricane Center in Miami pinpointed Debby at about 190 miles (310 km) east-southeast of the mouth of the Mississippi River.

The storms winds recently increased to 60 mph while moving at speeds up to 6 mph.

Along with downpours the storm system has also been linked to one tornado which touched down in southwest Florida.

Forecasters predict that Tropical Storm Debby could dump up to 10 inches of water along the coast while reaching hurricane strength over the next several days. In some isolated areas up to 15 inches of rain could be witnessed.

Debby is the fourth tropical storm to touch down before July 1, setting a new record based on record keeping which began in 1851.

As reported earlier today tropical storm Debby has caused 8 percent of the areas oil and gas production facilities to suspend production.

Residents in Louisiana are urged to follow all evacuation and other safety warnings issued by state officials.

Louisiana Declares State Of Emergency As Tropical Storm Debby Approaches is a post from: The Inquisitr

[Update: Tropical Storm Debby has officially formed in the Gulf of Mexico. The National Hurricane Center has issued a tropical storm warning for part of the Louisiana coast. The original story continues below.]

A weather system moving through the Gulf of Mexico is expected to become a tropical storm this weekend. The threatening storm, which will be named Tropical Storm Debby if it forms, has forced offshore oil workers to evacuate and oil production to temporarily shut down.

The National Hurricane Center released an advisory today, saying: ”A tropical storm may be forming… tropical-storm force winds are already occurring in the eastern Gulf of Mexico. This system has a 90% chance of becoming a tropical clone during the next 48 hours.”

Forecasters aren’t exactly sure where the storm is heading yet. According to MSNBC, Tropical Storm Debby will most likely head toward Texas although there is a chance it swings east and runs over Florida or north where it would Louisiana.

At 5:00 p.m. ET, Tropical Storm Debby was about 20 miles south-southeast of the Mississippi River. The storm is currently moving North with sustained 50 mph winds. Larger gusts have reached 175 mph.

The Associated Press reports that if Tropical Storm Debby forms in the Gulf, it will be the 1st time since 1851 that 4 named storms have formed in the Gulf of Mexico before July.

Oil Workers Flee As Tropical Storm Debby Forms In Gulf is a post from: The Inquisitr