Mileidy Erazo, 6, holds her dog Canelo as he swims in floodwater near her apartment in the Little Havana neighborhood of Miami, Saturday, June 4, 2022. (Daniel A. Varela/Miami Herald via AP)
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Tropical Storm Alex, which became the first named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season Sunday, headed toward Bermuda after killing three people in Cuba and causing flooding in parts of Florida.
Alex reached tropical storm force after strengthening off Florida's east coast early Sunday.
The U.S. National Hurricane Center said Alex had strengthened a bit by late Sunday, with maximum sustained winds of 70 mph (110 kph). It was centered about 245 miles (395 kilometers) west of Bermuda.
It was moving to the east-northeast at a brisk 28 mph (44 kph) and was expected to pass just north of Bermuda on Monday. A tropical storm warning was in effect there. Forecasters said it could drop 1 to 2 inches (25 to 50 mm) of rain across Bermuda beginning late Sunday and into Monday.
National Security Minister Michael Weeks said emergency services were monitoring the storm.
In Cuba, Alex killed three people, damaged dozens of homes in Havana and cut off electricity in some areas, authorities reported.
Parts of South Florida experienced road flooding from heavy rain and wind Saturday. Officials in Miami were towing stranded vehicles from flooded roadways.
Miami Beach Mayor Dan Gelber said the storm tested the system of drainage pumps the city recently installed as climate change has increasingly made flooding an issue in the low-lying area.
'œWe moved the water off pretty quickly, but in some areas, obviously, it was really challenging,'ť Gelber said. 'œThere were some problems getting through on some streets, one of the main arteries was unpassable, but by and large water is dissipating.'ť
Alex partially emerged from the remnants of Hurricane Agatha, which made landfall on on Mexico's southern Pacific Coast last week, killing at least nine people and leaving five missing as it moved overland.
The Atlantic hurricane season officially began Tuesday. This is an unusually early start to the storm season but not unprecedented for Florida.
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This story corrects that the storm formed over the Atlantic, not Gulf of Mexico, and also fixes lowered official death toll in Mexico to nine.
Kyle Hilderbrandt, right, paddles on NE 2nd Ave., in Oakland Park, Fla., Saturday, June 4, 2022. Tropical weather brought heavy rain and flooding to South Florida. (Joe Cavaretta/South Florida Sun-Sentinel via AP)
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A man crosses the flooded intersection near Southwest Fourth Street and Eighth Avenue in the Little Havana neighborhood of Miami, Saturday, June 4, 2022. (Daniel A. Varela/Miami Herald via AP)
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Furniture and plants from the RedBar Brickell bar litter the sidewalk after rainfall from Tropical Storm Alex caused flooding Saturday, June 4, 2022, in the Brickell area near downtown Miami. (Pedro Portal/Miami Herald via AP)
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Debris litters the pavement as water levels recede after rainfall from Tropical Storm Alex caused flooding Saturday, June 4, 2022, in the Brickell area near downtown Miami. (Pedro Portal/Miami Herald via AP)
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A pedestrian moves through floodwater on Southwest Second Street in the Little Havana neighborhood of Miami, Saturday, June 4, 2022. (Daniel A. Varela/Miami Herald via AP)
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Young boys paddle an inflatable kayak on a flooded Miami street, Saturday, June 4, 2022. A tropical storm warning was in effect along portions of coastal Florida and the northwestern Bahamas. Several Miami streets were flooded and authorities were towing abandoned vehicles (AP Photo/Marta Lavandier)
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Olban Tremeneo Lagos, 42, points to the water inside his apartment off Southwest Third Street and Eighth Avenue in the Little Havana neighborhood of Miami, on Saturday, June 4, 2022. Parts of South Florida were experiencing road flooding from heavy rain and wind Saturday as a storm system that battered Mexico moved across the state. (Daniel A. Varela/Miami Herald via AP)
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A woman walks her dog during a brief pause of heavy rain, Saturday, June 4, 2022, in Miami. A tropical storm warning was in effect along portions of coastal Florida and the northwestern Bahamas. Several Miami streets were flooded and authorities were towing abandoned vehicles. (AP Photo/Marta Lavandier)
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A person drives a classic American car through a street flooded by heavy rains, in Havana, Cuba, Friday, June 3, 2022. Heavy rains have drenched Cuba with almost non-stop rain for the last 24 hours as tropical storm watches were posted Thursday for Florida, Cuba and the Bahamas as the system that battered Mexico moves to the east. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
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A horse pulls a buggy with passengers through a street flooded by heavy rains, in Havana, Cuba, Friday, June 3, 2022. Heavy rains have drenched Cuba with almost non-stop rain for the last 24 hours as tropical storm watches were posted Thursday for Florida, Cuba and the Bahamas as the system that battered Mexico moves to the east. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
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Volunteers push a boat through a street flooded by heavy rains, to go and rescue a neighbor who is unable to leave his home on his own, in Havana, Cuba, Friday, June 3, 2022. Heavy rains have drenched Cuba with almost non-stop rain for the last 24 hours as tropical storm watches were posted Thursday for Florida, Cuba and the Bahamas as the system that battered Mexico moves to the east. (AP Photo/Ramon Espinosa)
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