Tropical Storm Leslie (2000)

Tropical Storm Leslie

Tropical storm (SSHWS/NWS)
Tropical Storm Leslie off the Florida coast on October 5
Formed	October 4, 2000
Dissipated	October 12, 2000
(Extratropical after October 7, 2000)
Highest winds	1-minute sustained: 45 mph (75 km/h)
Lowest pressure	1006 mbar (hPa); 29.71 inHg
Fatalities	3 indirect
Damage	$950 million (2000 USD)
Areas affected	Cuba, Bahamas, Florida, Bermuda, Atlantic Canada, Europe
Part of the 2000 Atlantic hurricane season

Tropical Storm Leslie was a weak, short-lived tropical cyclone that was never well-organized; however, its precursor was costlier than any other tropical cyclone in the 2000 Atlantic hurricane season. The twelfth named storm of the season, Leslie formed on October 4 over eastern Florida as a subtropical cyclone, out of a trough of low pressure. Strengthening over open waters, it attained enough tropical characteristics to be reclassified as Tropical Storm Leslie on October 5. The storm reached peak winds of 45 mph (75 km/h) before wind shear weakened it, and on October 7 transitioned into an extratropical cyclone over the open Atlantic Ocean. Leslie lasted three more days before losing its identity.

The precursor to Leslie produced torrential rainfall across Florida, peaking at 17.5 in (440 mm). The flooding damaged thousands of houses and caused three indirect deaths. Damage in southern Florida totaled $950 million (2000 USD), around half of which was from agricultural damage. After the flooding, portions of south Florida were declared a disaster area. Because of the limited impact as a tropical cyclone, the name Leslie was not retired in the Spring of 2001.

On September 27, a tropical wave entered the eastern Caribbean Sea, believed to be the same that spawned Hurricane Isaac. It moved generally westward, and remained weak with sporadic thunderstorm activity. The wave traversed around the periphery of Hurricane Keith, and by October 2, the system produced a mid-level circulation just south of western Cuba. It continued to organize, prompting a reconnaissance aircraft to investigate the area. The system lacked a surface circulation center and remained an elongated trough of low pressure. The tropical wave interacted with an approaching frontal trough, while its mid-level center turned to the northeast and made landfall near Sarasota, Florida on October 4.