A broad low pressure system located over the eastern Florida Panhandle is producing disorganized shower activity. The low is forecast to move southward to southwestward and emerge over the northeastern Gulf of Mexico later today, according to the National Hurricane Center.

Once the system is over water, environmental conditions are expected to be conducive for tropical cyclone formation, and a tropical depression is likely to develop by late Wednesday or Thursday while the system moves westward across the northern Gulf of Mexico. 

Regardless of whether or not a tropical cyclone forms, this system has the potential to produce heavy rainfall along portions of the northern and eastern U.S. Gulf Coast later this week.

Listen to an interview with National Weather Service meteorologist Eric Bunker about the upcoming storm moving into the gulf from Georgia.

The Hurricane Center says a tropical depression is likely to form in the Gulf of Mexico by the end of the week.

Forecasters in Miami said Monday that a trough of low pressure over central Georgia is forecast to move southward toward the northeastern Gulf where a broad area of low pressure will form in a couple of days.

This is a recent interview with Rhonda Bishop about the disappearance of her sister Pamela June Ray. Bishops recently made a visit to the Panama City Beach Police Department to offer more information on her sister's case.

WALTON COUNTY — A 20-year-old Santa Rosa Beach resident died early Friday morning after getting hit three times while walking on the Clyde B. Wells Bridge.

Brandon Jay Benavides was walking along the southbound lane of the bridge at approximately 3 a.m., according to a press release from Florida Highway Patrol. An unknown vehicle was also traveling south on the bridge and hit Benavides.

The driver did not stop, the press release said.

Sydney Ann Miller, 17 of Santa Rosa Beach, was driving behind the unknown vehicle in her Ford Mustang and also failed to stop. She ran over Benavides, who was lying in the roadway.

Jonathan Benavides, 25 of Santa Rosa Beach, was driving a Honda Civic behind Miller and also ran over the victim. Jonathan Benavides and Brandon Benavides were brothers, according to Lieut. Eddie Elmore, spokesman for FHP. 

There is currently no description/identification of the vehicle or driver.

Listen to an interview with National Weather Service meteorologist Don Shepherd.

SANTA ROSA BEACH — A South Walton man has been arrested after the The Walton County Sheriff's Office said five victims were defrauded of more than $450,000 in a barn kit scheme.

Investigators with the Sheriff’s Office were contacted in the fall by a victim who filed a fraud report on Beam Barns business owner Christopher Willman, 49.

Willman advertised the business as one offering custom barn kits for sale. Willman's residence and business address was listed in Santa Rosa Beach, according to the Sheriff's Office.

A victim reported in February 2016 she paid a deposit of $5,000 for a barn kit. In July 2018, the she paid an additional $20,758 for the kit. In September 2018, she made her final payment to the business in the amount of $15,155. Willman told her the barn kit would be delivered by September 2018, according to the Sheriff's Office.

The victim never received the barn kit, any materials, lumber, supplies, or a refund. By May 2019, four other Beam Barns customers reported paying Willman for barn kits they never received.

A total of $458,189.20 was defrauded from five victims in the barn kit scheme.

Interview with Dr. James Porter. He's a professor emeritus of ecology at the University of Georgia who has spent 20 years researching the ecological effects of munitions that find their way underwater.

DESTIN — City, county, and health department officials are looking into a possible flesh-eating bacteria case that may have been contracted in the Gulf.

According to the city of Destin spokesperson Catherine Card, the city hasn't received a call from the family making it difficult to determine the exact location.

She said they werent sure if the family was in Destin or Walton County 

Card added that officials need more information, but the Okaloosa County Health Department is aware. The local health department referred inquiries to the state. Repeated attempts to contact the Florida Health Department have been unsuccessful.

The investigation stems from a Facebook post that has gone viral. In Monday's post, which has been shared over 160,000 times, Michelle Brown wrote that her daughter contracted an infection called necrotizing fasciitis during a family vacation in Destin.

Listen to a recent interview with Trey Horton, general manager at The Back Porch in Destin