Tropical weather system could mean rain for Charlotte on Memorial Day
A tropical weather system centered Thursday between Bermuda and the Bahamas has a 50-50 shot of bringing rain to the Charlotte area Sunday and Memorial Day, according to the latest government forecasts.
The storm’s track was still uncertain Thursday afternoon. Forecasters said they should have a better sense by Friday morning of where the storm will head on the East Coast.
One model has the unnamed storm hugging the Carolinas coast as it moves straight north to Virginia, National Weather Service meteorologist Scott Krentz said at 1 p.m. Thursday.
Another model shows the storm moving Sunday into the Savannah River Valley and Augusta, Ga., before hitting the S.C. Midlands. “That would have a lot of moisture for the (S.C.) Upstate, the Charlotte area and the mountains,” Krentz said.
Either model, however, could mean some rain in Charlotte on Memorial Day, he said.
The National Hurricane Center in Miami issued a “special tropical weather outlook” Thursday morning saying showers were increasing with the low pressure system between Bermuda and the Bahamas.
“Environmental conditions are expected to become more conducive for tropical or subtropical cyclone formation on Friday while the system moves west-northwestward or northwestward toward the southeastern United States coast,” the outlook said.
“With the Memorial Day weekend approaching, all interests along the southeast coast from Georgia through North Carolina should monitor the progress of this low,” the hurricane center urged.
An Air Force reconnaissance plane is scheduled to investigate the weather system Friday, according to the hurricane center.
For now, the National Weather Service in Greer, S.C., puts the chances of rain and thunderstorms for Charlotte at 50 percent Sunday and 40 percent both Sunday night and after 11 a.m. Memorial Day. A 40 percent chance of showers continues through at least Wednesday.
Those percentages could end up higher or lower depending on how the tropical storm tracks, Krentz said.
Joe Marusak: 704-358-5067, @jmarusak
This story was originally published May 26, 2016 at 1:57 PM with the headline "Tropical weather system could mean rain for Charlotte on Memorial Day."