Tropical Storm Warnings Issued for Parts of Carolina Coastline

A tropical rainstorm is making its way into the Carolinas to start the week, eventually forecast to expand up the coast ushering in heavy rainfall and high winds. Here is a look at what is shaping up to be a messy week for a large part of the East Coast.

Tropical Rainstorm Gearing Up Off Coast of the Carolinas

Torrential rainfall, coastal flooding, and beach erosion are on the way for the Carolinas and beyond thanks to a budding tropical rainstorm. Forecasters are pulling back on the prediction that this system will become the next named storm of the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season, however, the feature still has the capability of delivering a significant impact in the coming hours and days.

The primary element keeping the system from becoming a named storm is that it has not formed a closed center of circulation. But the feature is still packing sustained winds nearing the 50-mph mark as of early Monday. A top gust of 67 mph was recorded on a pier in Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina as the storm inched close to the shoreline on Monday morning. A feature needs sustained winds of 39 to 73 mph to be designated as a tropical storm by the National Hurricane Center (NHC).

Officially dubbed as Potential Tropical Cyclone Eight by the NHC, the disturbance was located about 70 miles south-southwest of Cape Fear, North Carolina as of the last update. A tropical storm warning is in effect for an area from South Santee River South Carolina to the north to Ocracoke Inlet, North Carolina. Tropical storm conditions are expected for this area through late Monday.

The heavy rain has already been battering the Carolina coast. Rainfall amounts of 13 to 19 inches have been recorded along the North Carolina coastline over the last few days with more precipitation on the way.

Because the feature has not generated the closed center of circulation, it is being designated as a subtropical storm. This particular storm contains a mass of dry air on one of its sides, prohibiting the center of circulation from forming. The worst of the rain and the winds are located to the north and northwest of the area of low pressure.