Models keep Tropical Storm Josephine away from U.S., disturbance could form off NC coast

RALEIGH (WTVD) — Tropical Storm Josephine and a low-pressure system over North Carolina are being monitored by the National Hurricane Center.

Friday morning, Josephine was 680 miles east-southeast of the northern Leeward Islands. The storm has slightly weaker maximum sustained winds of 40 miles per hour and is moving west-northwest at 17 miles per hour, according to the National Hurricane Center.

Still, Josephine is not expected to be a problem for North Carolina, or any of the continental United States. ABC11 meteorologist Don “Big Weather” Schwenneker said the worst we could see would be some rough waves at the beach. Models have Josephine staying away from land and dying out in the Atlantic early next week.

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The storm’s projected path has it traveling north of the Leeward Islands and Puerto Rico. Models then turn the system even more north, keeping it out to sea before it dies out as an area of low-pressure system around Tuesday.

Before Josephine, the previous record for the earliest J-named storm to form was Jose, back on Aug. 22, 2005.

Thursday afternoon, a low-pressure system over North Carolina caught the attention of the National Hurricane Center.

The system is expected to move offshore and into the Atlantic Ocean. Once there, it has a 40 percent chance of developing into a tropical cyclone over the next couple of days. If the storm did form, its name would be Kyle.

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Last week, Hurricane Isaias made landfall in southeastern North Carolina Monday night and deteriorated to a tropical storm. It triggered a string of tornadoes on the east coast, one of which killed two people in Bertie County.

Last week, National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration updated its 2020 hurricane season outlook to “extremely active.” In May, the NOAA called for an “above normal” hurricane season.