The center of a tropical disturbance that flared up in the Gulf began to move across land on Friday, bringing heavy rainfall to parts of northeastern Mexico and South Texas.

Louisiana and other northern portions of the Gulf Coast aren't expected to see any effects from the system or any other tropical activity for the next few days.

Tropical Storm Erin is expected to become a hurricane later today, Aug. 15, and a Category 4 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 130 mph over the weekend. A major hurricane is a Category 3 or stronger, with maximum sustained winds of at least 111 mph.

As the Gulf disturbance nears Texas, tropical moisture will surge Friday and Saturday in the Houston metro area, leading to increasing storm chances.

Hurricane Erin strengthened into a powerful Category 4 storm Saturday in the Caribbean , where it threatened to dump flooding rains as it continued to grow larger and stronger, the National Hurricane Center said.

The National Hurricane Center says there’s now a 50% chance a tropical system could form in the southwestern Gulf of Mexico in the next 24–48 hours. The small low-pressure area could strengthen into a tropical depression or weak tropical storm before moving into northeastern Mexico or South Texas late Friday or early Saturday.

A tropical disturbance, called Invest 98L, in the Gulf of Mexico is expected to bring downpours and a renewed risk of flooding through Friday.