JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (Local15TV.com) -- Interrupting the long Memorial Day holiday weekend for many vacationers and tourists, Tropical Storm Beryl brought drenching rains, high winds and dangerous rip currents to northeast Florida and southeast Georgia on Sunday.
The storm spawned bands of rain and the threat of power outages as it neared landfall Sunday evening. Meteorologists said the storm was expected to make landfall late Sunday night near Jacksonville before turning north and heading into Georgia. The storm track is expected to turn northward and travel through Georgia before heading back out to sea. Forecasters said the storm's remnants are expected to linger through early next week.
The National Weather Service issued a host of warnings, including tropical storm advisories, flood watches and wind advisories as the storm lumbered toward the U.S. coastline. Many residents in Jacksonville saw sunny skies for much of the weekend but things began to deteriorate Sunday evening as the clouds turned darker and the winds kicked up.
The storm was classified as sub-tropical before being upgraded to a tropical storm. The U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami said Sunday that the storm was bringing sustained winds of 65 mph. It was making a slow westward trek of about 10 mph as it spun itself out in the Atlantic Ocean.
Many vacationers and tourists were forced from the beach as the storm approached.
Local15TV.com Staff Writer Alfred Charles contributed to this report. He can be reached at acharles@nptvgroup.com.
