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closeTropical Storm Hanna veered farther west than expected today as it approached the Carolinas coast, and the National Weather Service now says Charlotte and areas to the east could be hit by flooding overnight.
A flash flood watch has been issued through midday Saturday east of Interstate 77.
At the coast, an intensifying Tropical Storm Hanna is approaching hurricane strength and is expected to make landfall early Saturday morning near Myrtle Beach. Bands of heavy rain and thunderstorms are starting to batter the coast.
The flood watch in the Charlotte area is a surprise, as forecasters originally said the heavy rain would remain east of the region.
"The center of the storm is about 50 to 75 miles farther west than had been expected," said Bryan McAvoy, of the National Weather Service office in Greer, S.C. "That moves the heavy rain threat into parts of the Charlotte area."
McAvoy said the cutoff between flooding rain and much lighter amounts of precipitation will be very near to Charlotte.
"It's possible that the eastern suburbs could get a couple inches of rain, while the other side of the city gets much less," he said. "The cutoff line will be that close.
"But, given the heavy rain that fell last week, we are playing it safe and issuing the watch."
Up to 11 inches of rain fell in parts of Mecklenburg and Cabarrus counties last week, triggered by the remnants of Tropical Storm Fay. The ground is saturated in those areas, and McAvoy said 2 to 3 inches could fall overnight from Hanna.
"The good news is that Hanna is moving quickly, but some heavy rain could fall in the relatively brief amount of time that it impacts the area," he said.
By midafternoon, bands of heavy rain from Hanna had reached areas about 50 miles east of Charlotte. As the tropical storm approaches the Carolinas tonight, those bands of rain are forecast to move farther inland.
At the coast
Bands of heavy showers and thunderstorms began moving ashore this morning, as Hanna continued to dash toward landfall late tonight or early Saturday.
One of the feeder bands around the storm triggered a tornado warning at 10:30 a.m. near Morehead City in Carteret County, north of Wilmington. The National Weather Service said the public spotted a waterspout moving ashore in the area, but no damage was reported.
A tropical storm warning is in effect for all of the Carolinas coast, and a hurricane watch is posted from near Currituck on the Outer Banks south to between Georgetown, S.C., and Charleston. The National Hurricane Center said a hurricane warning might be issued this afternoon for the watch area.
In advance of the storm's arrival, schools are closed, evacuation shelters are opening, and some evacuations are being ordered from beach areas and barrier islands.
At 2 p.m., the center of Tropical Storm Hanna was about 310 miles south of Wilmington and about 160 miles east-northeast of Daytona Beach, Fla. The storm was dashing northwest about 20 mph, with top sustained winds of 70 mph.
Forecasters at the National Hurricane Center said Hanna's organization seems much stronger this afternoon. Often, winds in a tropical storm or hurricane increase after the system becomes better organized. An Air Force plane flying through the storm reported winds of more than 80 mph shortly before noon.
"The increased organization suggests the possibility of strengthening before landfall," Hurricane Center meteorologist Jack Beven said at midday.
Forecasters stress that since Hanna is a sprawling system, its tropical storm-force winds spread out 315 miles.
"The wind and rain will be felt long in advance of the storm's center," said Jamie Rhome, of the National Hurricane Center in Miami.
And those who aren't concerned about Hanna say they are paying attention to Hurricane Ike, a powerful storm that is forecast to menace the Southeast United States next week, possibly hitting the Carolinas coast at midweek.
"Ike is a very scary storm," said Mike Hughes, spokesman for a North Carolina power company that closely tracks hurricanes as they head through the Atlantic.
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