MACON, Ga. —
2 PM National Hurricane Center Advisory
Tropical Storm Ophelia has now formed off the eastern coast of the Carolinas as of 2 p.m. this afternoon. Ophelia formed as a result of a frontal boundary that passed through us in central Georgia earlier this week and stalled out over the Atlantic to the east of Florida. Ophelia possesses winds of 60 miles per hour currently, along with a central pressure of 992 mb. It is moving north-northwest at 12 miles per hour.
The good news is Ophelia will have now effects here in central Georgia. Its effects will stretch as far southward as the coast of the Carolinas, bringing significant rain, strong winds, and damaging storm surge for low lying areas near the ocean or coastal inlets. Ophelia will maintain tropical storm status for most of the weekend, and then weakening as is continues to move over the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, over cities such as Norfolk, Washington D.C., and New York.
Ophelia marks the 15th named storm of the 2023 Atlantic Hurricane Season. We also expect an area of interest of the coast of Africa to develop into the next name on the list, Philippe. It's too early to tell the forecasted path of this storm however, but we will continue to monitor it. We are past the most intense "peak" of hurricane season, but this is still a time of year where tropical activity will continue to develop rather quickly.
