Nicholas downgraded to a tropical depression Wednesday morning and is dragging itself over southeast Texas, leaving thousands in the dark and dumping a foot of rain. Meanwhile the National Hurricane Center is watching out for three other disturbances; two with high odds of becoming the next tropical depression or storm.

       First, Nicholas is about 25 miles west of Port Arthur, Texas, and 35 miles west of Lake Charles, Louisiana. The 14th named storm of the season is now moving east-northeast at 3 mph with its maximum sustained winds diminished to 30 mph, according to the NHC’s 2 a.m. update. Rain could also impact the western Florida panhandle.

       Nicholas became a hurricane with winds of 75 mph shortly before making landfall on the eastern part of the Matagorda Peninsula late Monday. Now, meteorologists expect Nicholas to continue to lose strength along the coast and diminish by the end of the week.

       Damage is seen from Hurricane Nicholas Tuesday, Sept. 14, 2021, in Surfside Beach, Texas. (Jon Shapley/Houston Chronicle via AP) (Jon Shapley/AP)

       “Nicholas is likely to slow to a crawl over Louisiana on Wednesday as it loses any significant steering,” said Eric Blake, a hurricane specialist with the NHC. Forecasters are predicting Nicholas might likely stall over the weathered Louisiana area, which is still recovering from its battle with Hurricane Ida in August.

       As a result, Nicholas will be giving the area a “significant” flash flood risk over the next couple of days.

       Currently, there are 200,000 people without power in Texas and Louisiana, according to Poweroutage.US.

       Nicholas hit the Texas coast and dumped more than a foot (30.5 centimeters) of rain along the the same area swamped by Hurricane Harvey in 2017, drenching storm-battered Louisiana and bringing the potential for life-threatening flash floods across the Deep South, according to a report by the Associated Press.

       Forecasters warned people along the central Gulf Coast that up to 20 inches (50 centimeters) are possible through Friday in places across a region still recovering from Category 4 hurricanes — Ida weeks ago and Laura last year.

       Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards noted that 95,000 electric customers were still without power more than two weeks after Ida hit. And he said the new storm could mean some who had regained power might lose it again. Homes already badly damaged by Ida were not yet repaired to the extent that they could withstand heavy rain, Edwards added.

       Galveston, Texas, recorded nearly 14 inches (35 centimeters) of rain from Nicholas, the 14th named storm of the 2021 Atlantic hurricane season, while Houston reported more than 6 inches (15 centimeters). The New Orleans office of the National Weather Service said late Tuesday that as much as 10 inches (25 centimeters) of rain could fall in parts of Louisiana, with some areas seeing particularly intense periods of 2 to 3 inches (5 to 8 centimeters) of rainfall per hour.

       Away from the home front, the NHC is keeping up with three tropical waves with strong chances of becoming the next storms of the year, according to the NHC’s 8 a.m. update.

       The National Hurricane Center is monitoring four tropical systems, including Tropical Depression Nicholas which has wreaked havoc to Texas. (The National Hurricane Center)

       A wave not far from Florida is expected to form near the southeastern Bahamas in the next few days, with a 70% chance of formation by late this week and a 60% chance of doing so by Wednesday as it moves northwest across the Atlantic. Florida may not have to worry about a possible landfall, however the storm may influence beach conditions.

       Also, a showers and thunderstorms associated with a low off the west coast of Africa in the next few days and has a 80% chance of formation in the next 48 hours and a 90% chance by the end of the week.

       Finally there’s a tropical wave expected to emerge off west Africa toward the end of the week. It has a 20 percent chance to form into a storm in the next five days, the NHC said.

       If these systems form into tropical storms, they would be named Tropical Storms Odette, Peter and Rose. The 2021 season has already seen 14 named systems, including five hurricanes, three of which have been major hurricanes of Category 3 strength or higher.

       Orlando Sentinel Staff Writer Lisa Maria Garza and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

       Jpedersen@orlandosentinel.com

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