Maps show Tropical Storm Debby's path and forecast
Tropical Storm Debby was gaining strength as it drifted over the Atlantic early Wednesday and was expected to turn back toward South Carolina for a second landfall, the National Hurricane Center said. It was forecast to then slowly make its way north, bringing heavy rainfall and flooding.
The storm was expected to reach the South Carolina coast by Wednesday night or early Thursday, the hurricane center said.
Forecasters said Debby, dueled by warmer coastal waters, would probably strengthen somewhat before striking land again, after which point it was expected to weaken as its center moves inland. After hitting South Carolina, Debby could move up the middle of North Carolina, through Virginia and into the Washington area by Saturday, the hurricane center said.
At 11 a.m. EDT on Wednesday, Debby was about 55 miles southeast of Charleston, South Carolina, and about 100 miles south of Myrtle Beach. The storm was crawling northeastward at just 5 mph, with maximum sustained winds of 60 mph — a jump from 45 mph winds reported three hours prior.
The storm's sluggish pace means Debby is lingering for a long time in places it passes over, so flood risks are high across the region and could persist in some areas well into the weekend. Forecasters anticipated the storm would speed up on its path across the Carolinas, though, on its way up into the Mid-Atlantic states.
Debby first hit land Monday morning as a Category 1 hurricane over Florida's Big Bend coast and left a trail of inundation in its wake despite weakening shortly after landfall.
Although forecasters said Debby would likely gain power while offshore, the strengthening should be moderate as long as it remains near the coast, as expected, which would mean limited interaction with warmer Gulf Stream waters. Forecasters anticipated tropical storm conditions would continue along the coast of South Carolina through Thursday night.
Storm surge forecast
The map below, updated Wednesday morning, shows the highest potential peak storm surge heights, including tides. Forecasters noted that the timing of peak surge and high tide in a given area, and whether they coincide or not, will ultimately determine how destructive the inundation will be.
Heavy rainfall totals dominate the forecast
Debby has moved markedly slowly since its initial landfall in Florida, and the hurricane center on Wednesday continued to forecast massive rainfall totals along its path. Forecasters said Wednesday morning that Debby was expected to produce an additional 3 to 9 inches of rainfall, with locally higher amounts potentially raising the upper boundary of that prediction to 25 inches in parts of South Carolina, and 15 inches in parts of southeastern North Carolina, through the end of the week.
As Debby shifts northeastward it is expected to touch an expansive area, bringing the risk of torrential rain and flooding as far north as New England through Saturday.
While the storm had already brought unprecedented rainfall to Georgia and South Carolina, officials in parts of Florida said they were grappling with the aftermath of record rainfall, too, and preparing for more throughout the week. The hurricane center said southeastern Georgia could be facing rainfall totals as high as 15 inches by Thursday, potentially exacerbating flood threats in areas that have already been inundated.
Places considerably farther north should brace for heavy rain and flooding, too, forecasters said. Areas from far-western South Carolina up through Virginia were expected to get as much as 7 inches of rainfall, with local amounts as high as 10 inches, through Friday, likely causing significant flash and urban flooding, according to the hurricane center.
Flooding forecasts were similar for a large swath of the East Coast from Maryland through upstate New York and Vermont, where meteorologists anticipated as much as 6 inches of rain could fall in some areas through Saturday morning.
