Rain bands rotating counter clockwise around Tropical Storm Cristobal will continue to affect much of eastern North Carolina for the remainder of the afternoon. The showers contain wind gusts to 35 mph...and brief heavy downpours. Through 530 PM...the showers will be more numerous east of Highway 17. Rainfall in most areas will be light with amounts of around one tenth of an inch expected...but totals of one half of an inch or more are possible in areas that receive the more frequent and heavier showers.
Forecast for Eastern Dare
Updated: 5:03 PM EDT on July 20, 2008
Tropical Storm Warning in effect...
Tonight
Mostly cloudy. Showers likely with a slight chance of thunderstorms this evening...then a slight chance of showers after midnight. Very windy with lows in the upper 70s. East winds 25 to 35 mph...becoming northwest 20 to 25 mph after midnight. Chance of rain 60 percent.
Monday
Mostly sunny and breezy. Highs in the upper 80s. West winds 10 to 20 mph.
... New information... at 200 PM EDT... the center of Tropical Storm Cristobal was located near latitude 34.6 north... longitude 76.1 west or about 25 miles... 40 km... east of Cape Lookout North Carolina and about 50 miles... 80 km... south-southwest of Cape Hatteras North Carolina.
... Areas affected... the Tropical Storm Warning is for the coastal waters from north of Surf City to Currituck Beach Light... including the Currituck and Pamlico Sound. The warning also includes the counties of Currituck... Dare... Beaufort... Hyde... Craven... Pamlico... Carteret... Onslow and Pender.
... Storm information... Cristobal is moving toward the northeast near 7 mph... and this motion is expected to continue for the next couple of days. On this track... the storm is forecast to move along the coast of North Carolina today and tonight.
Data from a reconnaissance aircraft indicate that the maximum sustained winds have decreased to near 45 mph... with higher gusts. Little change in strength is forecast during the next couple of days.
Tropical storm force winds extend outward up to 115 miles from the center.
The latest minimum central pressure as reported by an Air Force Reserve reconnaissance aircraft is 1007 mb... 29.74 inches.
... Storm surge and storm tide... minimal storm surge is expected from Cristobal.
On the ocean side... coastal storm surge flooding of 1 to 2 feet above normal tide levels is possible in areas of onshore winds from Cape Lookout north. South of Cape Lookout water rises peaked at a half to one foot. From Cape Lookout to Cape Hatteras... water level rises will peak in the next several hours at around a foot. From Cape Hatteras north... water levels will be near their peak around the high tide cycle at 10 PM tonight.
Minor water level rises of 1 to 2 feet in areas along the southern Pamlico Sound and along the lower Neuse River are expected this afternoon. The sound side of the Outer Banks and Ocracoke could see 2 to 3 foot rises as Cristobal departs the area tonight.
Waves in the surf zone north of Cape Lookout will be 5 to 7 feet... highest along the Outer Banks later this afternoon and tonight. This will result in minor erosional issues. There will be a high threat of rip currents along all area beaches continuing through tonight as the storm affects the area.
... Winds... sustained tropical storm force winds may impact portions of the immediate coast today into tonight. The areas most likely to see the strong winds will be along the Outer Banks from Cape Lookout to Oregon Inlet. Maximum winds are expected to be around 25 to 35 mph with gusts to 45 mph. The highest gusts will likely come in heavier rain bands.
... Marine impacts... south of Cape Lookout. Seas seas have reached their peak and are now diminishing. Seas there are 4 to 6 feet and will slowly drop through the day. North of Cape Lookout seas will build to 8 to 10 feet... locally higher near Cape Hatteras at 12 to 14 feet.
... Inland flooding... additional rainfall of one to two inches is possible across eastern North Carolina as rain bands from Cristobal move onshore. Isolatd amounts of up to four inches are possible where heavier bands train over the same area. This could result in minor flooding of low lying and poor drainage areas this afternoon and tonight.
... Tornadoes... tornado threat is minimal at this time. However... there is a small potential for isolated waterspouts along the coastal waters and sounds that could move onshore.
... Next update... the next Tropical Storm Cristobal local statement will be issued by the National Weather Service in Newport/Morehead City around 6 PM today.
