A sprawling area storms churning toward the Gulf Coast threatens to bring significant rain and flash flooding this week to a large swath of the southeast, from the Florida panhandle to Louisiana and parts of eastern Texas.

A cluster of thunderstorms that meteorologists call a tropical disturbance was moving west across the far northern Gulf on Thursday, delivering scattered heavy rainfall over the central Gulf Coast. Rain was expected to continue into Friday.

⚠️⛈️ A tropical disturbance will bring heavy rain to the Central Gulf Coast over the next few days. The heaviest rain is expected to focus over southwestern Louisiana Thursday and Friday. Numerous flash floods are likely, especially in the Moderate Risk area highlighted in red. pic.twitter.com/ZCrcgCoB2p