Tropical Storm forms off N.C. coast *
The Associated Press
Tuesday, July 18, 2006 11:06 a.m. ET
MIAMI (AP) -- A tropical depression formed Tuesday off the North
Carolina coast, only the second of the 2006 Atlantic hurricane season,
and a tropical storm watch was issued for the eastern part of the state.
Meteorologists said the depression could strengthen into a tropical
storm as early as Tuesday evening.
Its top sustained wind speed was 35 mph and the depression would be
named Beryl if the wind reached 39 mph.
At 11 a.m. EDT, the depression was centered about 220 miles
south-southeast of Cape Hatteras, and was moving toward the north at
about 5 mph, the National Hurricane Center said. A slow turn toward the
north-northwest or northwest was expected later Tuesday or Wednesday.
The watch extended along the coast from north of Cape Lookout to south
of Currituck Beach Light. A watch means that storm conditions are
possible within 36 hours.
The season's first named tropical storm, Alberto, splashed ashore in
Florida in mid-June, then plowed northward along the coast past North
Carolina's Outer Banks. One drowning was blamed on that storm.
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On the Net:
National Hurricane Center: http://www.nhc.noaa.gov