Bonnie Brings Rainy Weather
Bonnie is now a post-tropical cyclone, just a remnant of a low-pressure storm, and will bring lots of rain... and rain and more rain...
The main threats for Eastern North Carolina continue to be heavy rainfall, Sunday through early next week, and an increased threat of rip currents. A minor threat of tornadoes may also be possible as the depression moves up the coast Tuesday and Wednesday.
There continues to be the potential for Bonnie to generate heavy rainfall and some flooding over portions of the Carolinas during the next 2 to 3 days. Future information on Bonnie can be found in Public Advisories: http://www.wpc.ncep.noaa.gov/
Original post: TD#2 is heading our way, though we expect a "relatively weak impact," mostly rain. That's not much consolation if you came to Ocracoke for the holiday. Who forgot to order the beach weather?
According to the National Weather Service: "Tropical Depression Two is forecast to strengthen to a Tropical Storm. This system will bring heavy rain and gusty winds to portions of the southeastern United States and dangerous rip currents. Flash flooding will be possible in portions of the Carolinas and Virginia Saturday."
As of 5:00 p.m. EDT (21:00 UTC) May 27, Tropical Depression Two is located within 25 nautical miles of 24.5°N 74.7°W, about 435 miles (695 km) southeast of Charleston, South Carolina, or about 440 miles (705 km) southeast of Hilton Head Island, South Carolina. Maximum sustained winds are 30 knots (35 mph; 55 km/h), with maximum gusts up to 55 knots (65 mph; 100 km/h). The minimum barometric pressure is 1009 mbar (hPa; 29.80 inHg), and the system is moving west-northwest at 11 knots (13 mph; 20 km/h). For latest official information, see:
- The NHC's latest Public Advisory on Tropical Depression Two
- The NHC's latest Forecast Advisory on Tropical Depression Two
This is the first storm to head toward Ocracoke, but the first of 2016 was Hurricane Alex back in January, who was way ahead of the June 1st official first day of hurricane season.
The 2016 Atlantic Hurricane season already has its own Wikipedia page.
This one will be named Bonnie if it becomes a Tropical Storm. Is it just me, or does the National Hurricane Center lack imagination when it comes to names? We had an Alex in 2004 – and he was a big one, bringing the highest tide Ocracoke had had since the legendary Storm of '44. We've had a Bonnie. She blew past Ocracoke and through Tidewater Virginia in late August 1998, when I was in Norfolk waiting to have sweet Caroline. We were in one of the few neighborhoods in the area that didn't lose power for days and days (our outage was brief), which was a good thing for my family because there is no one hotter and meaner than a full-term woman in August without air conditioning. Alex and Bonnie did some damage – why are their names still being used? Can someone buy the NHC a baby name book?
Anyway, my salty old sea captain husband swears by Dr. Jeff Masters's blog on wunderground.com. Jeff says that heavy rain will be the biggest impact of TD2/TS Bonnie. Basically, Monday and Tuesday will be wet some, with 2–4" of rain possible.
If we get some beach weather, beware of strong rip currents caused by the storm.
We'll keep you posted about how Ocracoke fares. Fair winds!
The Hyde County Emergency Management department weighed in on the storm this morning:
