Tropical Storm Colin formed along the South Carolina coast on Saturday, bringing the threat of rain and strong winds for a day or two over the holiday weekend before improving by Monday’s Fourth of July celebration.
The National Hurricane Center in Miami warned of the possibility of localized flash flooding along the Carolina coast through Sunday morning. At 8 a.m. EDT, the storm’s center was about 25 miles (40 kilometers) west-southwest of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, with maximum sustained winds of 40 mph (65 kph). It was moving northeast at 8 mph (13 kph).
The hurricane center said a tropical storm warning is in effect from the South Santa River in South Carolina to Duck, North Carolina, including Pamlica Bay. The storm is not expected to strengthen as it moves into the Atlantic on Monday.
“Colin will continue to produce locally heavy rainfall over parts of coastal South and North Carolina through Sunday morning,” the center said. Isolated amounts can reach up to 4 inches (10 centimeters).
“These rainfalls may lead to localized areas of flash flooding,” the center said.
In addition, Tropical Storm Bonnie made landfall in Nicaragua, bringing the threat of flooding from heavy rain as it headed toward a projected rapid crossing of the Pacific Ocean and possible strengthening into a hurricane.
Bonnie made landfall Friday evening on the Caribbean coast of Nicaragua about 75 miles (120 kilometers) south of Bluefields, the US National Hurricane Center said. Forecasters are warning of the risk of significant flooding with up to 8 inches (about 20 centimeters) of rain, and even more in some places.
Bona was centered about 65 miles (105 kilometers) southeast of the Nicaraguan capital Managua, with maximum sustained winds of 40 mph (65 kph). Bonnie was moving west at 14 mph (22 kph) and was expected to exit the Pacific Ocean on Saturday and become a hurricane off the southern coast of Mexico.
Bluefields officials said they set up 50 temporary shelters before the storm arrived, and many of its 57,000 residents boarded up their windows.
Many Nicaraguans still remember Hurricane Joan, the powerful 1988 storm that wreaked havoc on the coast and caused nearly 150 deaths in the country.
“We’re waiting for the storm, hoping it doesn’t destroy our region,” Bluefields resident Ricardo Gomez, who was 8 when Joan hit, said before Bonnie arrived.
In 2020, the area was also hit by two powerful hurricanes, Eta and Iota, which caused $700 million in damage in quick succession.
Officials in Costa Rica expressed concern that the storm would trigger landslides and flooding in an area already battered by days of rain. The government reported that seven shelters in the north of the country already hold nearly 700 people who were forced to relocate due to the floods.
A major landslide a week ago cut the main highway connecting the capital San Jose to the Caribbean coast, and it remained closed on Friday. On Friday, the government canceled classes across the country.
Earlier, heavy rains also destroyed or damaged a number of bridges.
Rapidly changing weather began to sweep across parts of the Caribbean on Monday, but it didn’t meet the criteria for a tropical storm designation until Friday.
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