Tropical storm brushes N.C. coast, weakens

A mother and her daughters walked on North Topsail Beach, N.C., while her husband surfed waves produced by the storm. (Don Bryan/The Jacksonville Daily News via Associated Press)

RALEIGH, N.C. - Tropical Storm Cristobal dumped rain and brought rough seas to the North Carolina coast yesterday, and forecasters predicted the weakening system was headed for the open Atlantic.

At 5 p.m., the National Hurricane Center said the center of the storm had moved to 45 miles east of Cape Lookout and 40 miles south-southwest of Cape Hatteras with maximum sustained winds continuing at 45 miles per hour. The storm was moving to the northeast at 8 miles per hour.

The advisory said the storm's center would head away from the coast early today.

The National Hurricane Center issued a tropical storm warning from Cape Lookout to the Virginia-North Carolina border, including Pamlico Sound.

The storm's strongest winds were east of the center, out at sea, National Weather Service meteorologist Rich Bandy said. Winds on the coastal side of the storm were about 25 miles per hour and will have little impact on coastal cities unless the storm strengthens.

Bandy said some rain was falling over the smoldering wildfire that has burned 64 square miles in Pocosin Lakes National Wildlife Refuge since it was started by lightning June 1.

Rainfall was expected to be 1 to 2 inches, but heavy rain bands in some areas could drop 4 to 5 inches. Cristobal's winds were expected to push tides 2 to 3 feet above normal.

The National Weather Service said a few areas could see flooding from heavy rain. Flooding was reported Saturday in Wilmington, N.C., and the area picked up 3.43 inches of rain, a record for the day.

The Hurricane Center also said Tropical Storm Bertha had lost its tropical system characteristics and was expected to weaken during the next day or so. The center of Bertha was 850 miles east-northeast of Cape Race, Newfoundland.

Meanwhile, Tropical Storm Dolly, the fourth named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season, unleashed showers on Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula as it sped toward the Cancun area yesterday. It was expected to reach the Gulf of Mexico this morning.

A tropical storm warning was issued for the Yucatan peninsula.