Downpours are expected in Houston on Friday as a tropical disturbance along the northern coast of the Gulf of Mexico stalls without strengthening.

Likening the system to a merry-go-round, Pilié said weather forecasting models Thursday showed the storm doing a full loop around the southeast U.S. before circling back to the Gulf Coast, bringing increased rain chances and the potential for tropical development late next week.

Depression or no depression, the system could bring several inches of rain to the north-central Gulf Coast, including Alabama, through Friday. The National Weather Service in Mobile thinks that the most rain with this system will likely fall closer to the coast, with scattered storms possible.

The Florida Panhandle will see heavy rainfall from Invest 93L after it reaches the Gulf on Wednesday. The greatest threat to the area at the moment is flash flooding in low-lying, poor-drainage areas and urban locations. Invest 93L is currently expected to make landfall near Louisiana's southeastern coast Thursday morning.

KPRC 2’s Weather team has been monitoring a tropical system headed toward the Gulf, but the National Hurricane Center has dramatically lowered the chance of any development.

The National Hurricane Center thinks a tropical depression could form in the Gulf in a few days. Forecasters continued to track an area of low pressure that was in the western Atlantic Ocean just east of the Florida peninsula on Tuesday. It is expected to move westward, across the Sunshine State, and into the Gulf by Wednesday.

A disorganized low-pressure area off Florida is showing increasing chances of becoming a tropical depression or tropical storm this week.

With a potential tropical depression in the Gulf and heavy rain in the forecast, all of us at the USA TODAY Network are dedicated to doing everything we can to keep you informed.