Heavy rains from Tropical Storm Bonnie soaked the coast of South Carolina ruining the start of Memorial Day weekend. Top sustained winds reached 45 mph (75 kph) early Sunday morning, making it the season's second-named tropical storm, four days before the official start of hurricane season in the Atlantic Ocean, according to the National Hurricane Center, AP reported. The center of Bonnie, which was stationary Saturday night, was about 100 miles (165 kilometers) south-southeast of Charleston as of 2 a.m. EDT, the Miami-based center said in an advisory. Bonnie was moving toward the coast at 6 mph (9 kph) and tropical storm warnings remained in effect for the entire South Carolina coast. Heavy rain and dangerous surf kept people off the Georgia, South Carolina and southern North Carolina beaches on Saturday. No evacuations have been ordered, with forecasters saying the biggest danger will likely be from locally heavy rain. Officials in Charleston were monitoring the winds. The area has 15 bridges over water than are at least 65-feet tall that are closed when winds get 40 mph or above. A Tropical Storm Warning is in effect for the South Carolina coast and forecasters said an isolated tornado or two will be possible early Sunday over the immediate coastal region from central South Carolina through southern North Carolina. The storm is expected to bring 2 to 4 inches of rain across much of the area this weekend, with 6 inches possible in some spots.
