Hurricane Ophelia circled in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of South and North Carolina on Sunday and will continue to do so today. More than 250 miles of coastline has been placed under a tropical storm watch from Edisto Beach, S.C. to Cape Lookout, N.C.
As Ophelia moved in on North Carolina, Gov. Mike Easley dispatched 200 National Guard to coastal staffing centers and ordered a mandatory evacuation of tourists from Ocracoke Island on the Outer banks, but residents were allowed to stay.
At 5 a.m. EDT, Monday the National Hurricane Center warned Ophelia was taking a slow turn to the west with winds at 75 mph and both wind-speed and movement expected to remain stationary throughout the day. Watches or warnings may have to be extended northward later today.
The center of hurricane Ophelia was located near latitude 31.3 north, longitude 76.7 west or about 220 miles east-southeast of Charleston, S.C. and about 280 miles south-southwest of Cape Hatteras, N.C.
Ophelia is moving toward the west near 3 mph. A gradual turn toward the northwest at a slow forward speed is expected during the next 24 hours.
Maximum sustained winds are near 75 mph, with higher gusts. Ophelia is a category one hurricane. Little change in strength is forecast during the next 24 hours. Hurricane force winds extend outward up to 30 miles from the center and tropical storm force winds extend outward up to 160 miles.
Heavy rains associated with Ophelia could soon begin to affect coastal sections of northeastern South Carolina and southeastern North Carolina tonight or Tuesday.
Topics Catastrophe Natural Disasters Hurricane North Carolina
Was this article valuable?
Here are more articles you may enjoy.
Beef Between Wholesale and Retail Agents Should Go to Trial, Court Finds 
Insurers Face Business Interruption Claims After Global Tech Outage 
Allstate, State Farm Sued Over $4 Billion Maui Fire Settlement 
Trigger Warning: Cyber Policy Wordings to Impact Coverage for Tech Outage 
