Fay downgraded to tropical depression

MIAMI, Aug. 24 (UPI) -- Tropical Storm Fay, which brought more death and destruction to Florida than many hurricanes, has been downgraded to a tropical depression.

At 11 p.m. EDT Saturday, the center of the storm was in the Florida panhandle, about 30 miles east-northeast of Pensacola and moving west-northwest at almost 8 mph, the National Hurricane Center in Miami reported.

While Fay never became a hurricane, the storm remained over Florida for several days, bringing heavy rain and flooding. Officials say at least 11 deaths have been linked to Fay, including seven people killed in traffic crashes, two drownings, one from carbon monoxide and a power company linesman who was electrocuted.

Maximum sustained winds were 35 mph. But forecasters warned that Fay is still a rainmaker, with 6 to 12 inches possible in a belt ranging from the western Florida Panhandle and southwestern Georgia to eastern Louisiana, with as much as 20 inches possible in isolated locations.

Fay could become almost stationary Monday over Mississippi and eastern Louisiana.

The storm caused several deaths in Haiti and the Dominican Republic before it hit Florida.