A coastal storm has taken shape from a non-tropical area of low pressure attached to a dying cold front off the southeastern U.S., bringing heavy rains, coastal flooding, and tropical storm conditions (winds above 38 mph) to the Carolinas today.
So far the heaviest rainfall has fallen from the Grand Strand in South Carolina northward to the Crystal Coast of North Carolina, with radar estimates of totals approaching a foot at the tip of Cape Fear in North Carolina near Bald Head Island.
Another 4 to 8 inches of rainfall is forecast for today across northeast South Carolina and southeast North Carolina, centered on Wilmington, which could produce considerable flash and urban flooding. The flood threat will spread inland across much of North Carolina, including the Carolina Piedmont, through early Tuesday.
Strong and persistent onshore flow will also lead to minor coastal flooding from near Pawleys Island in South Carolina northward to the lower Outer Banks, Hatteras Island, and Pamlico Sound in North Carolina. Seas are already topping 13 feet at offshore buoys this morning and treacherous marine conditions will continue today.
Time quickly running out to become a named stormThe strung-out low-pressure system this morning hasn't yet separated from the front that spawned it, an important step in it becoming subtropical or even tropical and garnering a name (Helene is the next name on the list). Whether or not it becomes Helene is largely incidental, as the system will be moving inland soon with little additional time to strengthen even if it transitioned to a subtropical or tropical storm.
