The Latest: Official: boy hit by log in storm surge, dies

Baldwin County Sheriff's Capt. Stephen Arthur says the boy was hit by the debris around midmorning Wednesday in Fort Morgan, a coastal community on a peninsula at the mouth of Mobile Bay.

The National Hurricane Center says Tropical Storm Cindy is heading toward the northern Gulf coast, where it is expected to make landfall in the coming hours.

Heavy rains associated with the storm are raising the possibility of life-threatening flash floods over a wide area of the coast.

Bay St. Louis is in Hancock County, where Emergency Management Director Brian Adam says officials counted 355 roads with standing water early Wednesday.

Heavy rains from Tropical Storm Cindy have caused flooding in low-lying areas along the Alabama coast.

Double red flags flew in Gulf Shores to warn people to stay out of the waves, yet live video feeds showed a few people still on the beach despite rain showers and high winds.

Harrison County Emergency Management Director Rupert Lacy says the waterspout made landfall around 8:30 a.m. Wednesday, causing damage to fences, trees and power lines.

Mississippi officials reported standing water on hundreds of roads after heavy rains, but Lacy says some flash flooding is receding for now, and no buildings have yet been reported as flooding.

Forecasters say a slightly weakened Tropical Storm Cindy is threatening heavy rains and life-threatening flash flooding over a wide area of the northern Gulf Coast.

Forecasters say a tropical storm warning has been discontinued for the greater New Orleans area and other areas north and east of the mouth of the Mississippi River.

[...] the tropical storm warning remains in effect from the mouth of the Mississippi to San Luis Pass, Texas.

John Rickmon, a real estate broker in Pensacola, Florida, said he has been touring properties in the Panhandle area to see if they've been affected by rains from the tropical storm in the Gulf.

Elsewhere in the Florida Panhandle, an emergency official reported downed trees and other damage — but no injuries — from severe weather caused by a passing storm cell.

Forecasters say the area can expect heavy rain through Thursday as the tropical storm moves through Louisiana and Texas.

The National Weather Service says flash flooding from torrential rain is the main problem associated with the storm, but twisters are also possible.

Forecasters issued tornado warnings for the areas around Fort Walton Beach and Indian Pass in Florida after radar indicated possible tornadoes Wednesday morning.

The National Weather Service said early Wednesday that flash flood watches covered parts of Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Georgia as the storm trudged closer to the U.S. mainland.

The weather service has warned that the storm brings the threat of "life-threatening flash flooding."

Rain bands began pushing ashore Tuesday even before the system reached tropical storm strength.