Watches issued in NC for Hurricane Maria while SC coast feels effects

As of the National Hurricane Center’s 5 p.m. update watches on the U.S. east coast have been issued for Hurricane Maria, which has remained a Category 2 storm since the hurricane center’s 11 a.m. update.

A tropical storm watch has been issued for the coast of North Carolina from Surf City northward to the North Carolina/Virginia border, including the Albemarle and Pamlico Sounds, and a storm surge watch has been issued for the coast of North Carolina from Cape Lookout northward to Duck.

While it is unlikely that Maria will make landfall east coast of the U.S. its cone of uncertainty still grazes part of the North Carolina coast, and the storm will be large enough that even if it doesn’t make landfall it could still cause damage. Lee is expected to stay safely in the middle of the Atlantic for the time being.

Tropical weather track

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Source: National Hurricane Center

Maria is roughly 425 miles south-southeast of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, moving north at 9 mph. It has maximum sustained winds of 105 mph with gusts up to 127 mph.

Even though Maria will not directly strike the Lowcountry, it is already being felt along the coast, where the National Weather Service in Charleston has issued a high surf advisory through 8 p.m. Monday. There will also be a heightened risk of potentially deadly rip currents during this time, and higher tides could bring shallow flooding to low lying coastal areas.

Maria is expected to move in a northern direction until mid week, when it should be swept back to the east. There are currently no watches or warnings associated with the storm, which is expected to remain a hurricane through at least Thursday.

Hurricanes Maria and Lee spin in the Atlantic

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Source: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

Hurricane Lee

Meanwhile, after falling apart and regenerating, Hurricane Lee is still a Category 1 hurricane as of Sunday evening. It is the eighth hurricane of the 2017 Atlantic hurricane season.

It is currently 890 miles east of Bermuda, moving southeast at 3 mph, which is roughly the average human walking speed. It has maximum sustained winds of 90 mph, with gusts up to around 115 mph.

Tropical weather track

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Source: National Hurricane Center

The storm’s current track shows it making a loop and curving to the north in the middle of the Atlantic. It is not anticipated to pose any threat to land at this point, and no coastal warnings or watches have been issued in association with it.

Lee is expected to gradually weaken over the next several days. Its forward motion is expected to remain very slow, so slow in fact that the energy in its own wake could even help to weaken it. It is also positioned in such a way that energy flow from Hurricane Maria could interfere with it, which would also cause it to destabilize.

The hurricane center expects Lee to be a tropical storm again by Friday.

This story was originally published September 24, 2017 at 10:23 AM with the headline "Watches issued in NC for Hurricane Maria while SC coast feels effects."