Keep an eye on potential tropical storm Imelda this weekend
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Image: National Hurricane Center
A year on from Hurricane Helene, there is another tropical storm that North Carolinians need to keep an eye on.
Why it matters: The Atlantic hurricane season has been quiet so far, but meteorologists are tracking two (possibly three) named storms that may impact the Carolinas — Tropical Storm Humberto, Hurricane Gabrielle, and tropical depression (or Tropical Storm) Imelda, which is likely to form.
- Hurricane Gabrielle, which became the second hurricane of the season last Sunday, snapped a 20-day streak without an active storm system, according to the Weather Channel.
What they're saying: "It's very unusual to have no systems develop between late August and mid-September," Fox Weather hurricane specialist Bryan Norcross tells Axios.
Between the lines: It's too early to predict where these storms will land, as Humberto, Imelda, and a cold front moving across North Carolina could all impact each other. Hurricane Gabrielle is tracking toward Europe.
- But "it is quite likely that some portion of this developing system, which would become Imelda, will either get very close to the Carolina coast or go across the coast," Jonathan Blaes, a meteorologist at the National Weather Service's Raleigh office, told Axios.
Zoom in: Because it is forming so close to the U.S., Imelda could begin influencing the weather in central North Carolina by Monday.
- "The good news is that, at this point, it doesn't look like we're looking at the potential for extreme amounts of rainfall ... but if you get a couple inches dumped over Raleigh and urban areas over a short period of time, that's going to be enough to cause some flash flooding worries," Blaes said.
Stunning stat: This is the second time since 1950 that no named storms formed during peak hurricane season — between Aug. 29 and Sept. 15 — National Weather Service meteorologist Ernesto Rodríguez told the Associated Press.
What we're watching: Some models raise the chance of the Fujiwhara effect — a rare storm "dance" where two tropical systems spin around each other. One may absorb the other, or they may fling apart, WBTV meteorologists explain.
- It's too early to say if Humberto and potential Imelda will actually tango, but the possibility adds yet another twist to this forecast.