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Chris, the third storm of the Atlantic hurricane season in 2018, was named Sunday morning as he was gaining strength off the coast of Carolina. The storm is expected to intensify in a hurricane over the next few days, but stay offshore before heading to Newfoundland this weekend
The storm, 150 miles south of Cape Hatteras, contains 40 mph winds. It is almost stationary, and little movement is expected until Tuesday. As a result, it is expected to continue to generate potentially lethal waves and tear currents for the beaches of central Atlantic. A man died in rough surf in Kill Devil Hills, NC, on Saturday, when Chris was still a tropical depression.
As the storm is positioned on very warm ocean waters, it is expected to strengthen gradually over the next 72 hours and become a hurricane between Tuesday and Wednesday.
At this point, a cold front should absorb Chris and quickly sweep him north-northeastward toward Nova Scotia and Newfoundland. It should gradually weaken when it will move over a colder water.
As the third named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season in 2018, Chris has developed more than a month ahead of normal. On average, the third storm forms on August 13 said Phil Klotzbach a tropical weather researcher at Colorado State University and Capital Weather Gang contributor.
"If #Chris becomes a hurricane as expected, it will be the second hurricane in July," Brian McNoldy the Tropical Weather Expert of Capital Weather Gang, noted on Twitter. "The last time that there were two hurricanes in July 2008 (Bertha and Dolly)."
Elsewhere in the tropical Atlantic, Beryl – once a hurricane – has significantly weakened at the approach of the Lesser Antilles. It's now a minimal tropical storm, with peak winds of 40 mph. The storm should, however, maintain this strength as it heads west during the following day, causing tropical storm warnings for Dominica and Guadeloupe, where gusting winds and one to three winds inches of rain are possible. Storm Beryl. (National Hurricane Center)
By Tuesday, the storm is expected to degenerate but could still produce gusts of wind and heavy rain over Puerto Rico and Hispaniola
