Tropical Storm Chantal forecast to bring heavy rain to the Carolinas

MIAMI AP Tropical Storm Chantal formed off the southeast U S coast and was forecast to bring heavy rains to parts of the Carolinas on Saturday Tropical storm warnings were issued for portions of the two states the National Hurricane Center in Miami stated The storm s center was located about miles kilometers east of Charleston South Carolina on Saturday night and miles kilometers south-southwest of Wilmington North Carolina Its maximum sustained winds were clocked at mph kph and it was moving north at mph kph Rain bands from Chantal were moving over the coast the hurricane center noted and the storm s center was expected to move over South Carolina overnight or early Sunday with flash floods an increasing concern The storm was expected to weaken rapidly after landfall Heavy rain was forecast for the coastal plain of the Carolinas through Monday total rainfall of to inches to centimeters with local amounts up to inches threatening flash flooding Source