Residents of South Carolina fill sandbags on August 30 ahead of Hurricane Idalia. The Carolinas are watching now as Tropical Storm Ophelia is forecast to deliver rains, wind and surf to the Carolinas again this weekend. File Photo by Richard Ellis/UPI | License Photo
A disturbance in the Atlantic became Tropical Storm Ophelia on Friday, hurricane forecasters said, warning that North Carolina coastal areas should be on guard for storm conditions this weekend.
Ophelia is the 16th named tropical weather system. Advertisement
In its 2 p.m. EDT advisory, the National Hurricane Center said Ophelia was located about 150 miles southeast of Cape Fear, N.C., moving at 12 mph toward the north-northwest. The storm has maxiumum sustained winds of 60 mph.
A tropical storm warning is in effect for Cape Fear, N.C., to Fenwick Island, Del., as well as for Albemarle and Pamlico sounds, plus the tidal Potomac south of Cobb Island. Additionally, Chesapeake Bay south of North Beach is under a tropical storm warning.
A storm surge warning is in effect for Beaufort Inlet, N.C. to Chincoteague, Va., as well as Chesapeake Bay south of Colonial Beach, Va., the Neuse and Pamlico rivers, and portions of Pamlico and Albemarle sounds.
Storm surge watches were posted for Surf City, N.C., to Beaufort Inlet, N.C.
Forecasters said Ophelia’s north-northwest track will continue for the next day or so before the storm system will take a slight turn to the north. Advertisement
Ophelia will approach the North Carolina coast Friday night, forecasters said, warning that the storm will move across eastern North Carolina, southeastern Virginia, and the Delmarva Peninsula on Saturday and Sunday.
Some wind-speed strengthening is possible in the next 24 hours, forecasters said.
Tropical storm conditions will continue spreading northward through Saturday, forecasters said. They also warned that the combination of a dangerous storm surge and the tide will cause normally dry areas near the coast to be flooded by rising waters moving inland from the shoreline.
Were the storm to come ashore during high tide, forecasters said the Neuse, Bay, Pamlico and Pungo rivers could rise 3 to 5 feet.
