Tropical Storm Debby made landfall for the second time in South Carolina early Thursday morning, bringing heavy rain and the possibility of flooding.
Debby made landfall in Bulls Bay, with the storm likely to impact the South and North Carolina coastlines before moving inland to the Mid-Atlantic states, according to the National Hurricane Center.
A further three to nine inches of rainfall will pose “major” flood dangers in the Carolinas and Western Virginia, according to the report. Tornado watch warnings have also been issued for sections of North Carolina and Virginia, which will be evaluated at 1 pm ET.
More than 5 million people live in its prospective path, which includes about 1,300 schools and over 80 hospitals. Gusts could reach 70 mph, but there is no possibility of hail.
“A high risk of flash flooding continues for portions of South Carolina, North Carolina, and Virginia through tonight,” the National Hurricane Center stated in a Thursday morning update on X. After crossing the East Coast, the storm is predicted to travel northeast, with communities as far north as New York and Vermont receiving several inches of rain by this weekend.
Debby is predicted to travel into central North Carolina, Virginia, and Washington on Saturday before becoming an extratropical cyclone.
“Tropical cyclones always produce heavy rain, but because they’re moving, it usually doesn’t accumulate that much in one place,” the National Hurricane Center’s Richard Patch previously noted.
It comes after Debby made landfall as a Category 1 storm in Florida’s Big Bend region on Monday, before moving on to the Florida-Georgia border by the evening. Hundreds of thousands were left without electricity, with five deaths reported.
Debby continued to travel northeast over areas of Georgia and South Carolina on Tuesday before heading offshore and meandering in the Atlantic on Wednesday.
There is a stay, causing thunderstorms from the East Coast to the Great Lakes.