Tropical Storm Erika is barreling through the Caribbean on a collision course for the Florida peninsula.

As of 5 p.m. Friday, forecasters at the National Weather Service anticipated the storm will arrive in south Florida sometime between late Sunday evening and early Monday morning. With maximum sustained winds of 45 mph as of 8 p.m., Erika was moving on a westward course of 21 mph. The storm was located near the Dominican Republic Friday evening after leaving widespread flooding in her wake in other parts of the Caribbean. Erika has been blamed for at least two deaths in Dominica. Forecasters anticipate the storm to weaken somewhat over the next day as it moves over land, heading toward Florida. As of Friday evening, Erika's projected path would take the storm straight up the state's west coast with possible impact between Sarasota and Tampa.

Forecasters expect Erika will weaken into a tropical depression Saturday as it collides with Cuba. As of Friday evening, it was expected Erika would regain tropical storm strength before its arrival in Florida. See Also:

As the storm puts Florida in its sights, forecasters and emergency management officials are urging residents to get their disaster plans in place. The state's Emergency Operations Center has partially activated ahead of the storm's arrival. Gov. Rick Scott also declared a state of emergency for all Florida counties Friday morning.

"The biggest thing to do is come up with a plan and watch the forecast track and, if needed, implement that plan," Gusack said. "It's all about being prepared, having a plan and executing that plan."

For a complete look at weather in your neighborhood, visit your local Patch's homepage. Graphic courtesy of the National Weather Service