Tropical Storm Imelda forms, expected to threaten Carolinas with heavy rains

Tropical Storm Imelda formed Sunday, joining the monster Hurricane Humberto in the Atlantic, and forecasters warned it'll likely bring heavy rains to the Carolinas.The big picture: Imelda is expected to strengthen over the Bahamas on Monday and become a major hurricane that night or early Tuesday. Forecasters expect the U.S. East Coast to be spared the worst of it — though there's a chance of heavy rainfall in the Southeast, and the Carolinas could see several inches of rain that may trigger flooding.National Hurricane Center deputy director Jamie Rhome said in a Sunday evening video post that while the impacts for the U.S. "are coming down, they're not zero, there will still be some impact for the East Coast United States."Threat level: "Storm total rainfall amounts of 2 to 4 inches with local maxima of 6 inches are expected through Tuesday across coastal South Carolina into southeast North Carolina," per a National Hurricane Center forecast discussion posted at 5pm Sunday ET."This rainfall could result in isolated flash, urban, and minor river flooding," according to the discussion."Minor coastal flooding is possible in areas of onshore winds over the Southeastern U.S. coastline."Zoom in: Rhome said in his Sunday evening forecast there's a high rip current risk for the Southeast coast of the U.S. The risk extends from southeastern Florida, "up the east coast of Florida, all of coastal Georgia and much of coastal South Carolina, and then again, on the Outer Banks of North Carolina," Rhome said in the video that's posted to Facebook. "For the next couple of days, the rip current risk is going to be high so make sure you're being safe going to the beach over the next couple of days, always swim near lifeguard and check local beach conditions," he added. Between the lines: Climate change has strengthened the intensity and maximum wind speeds of Atlantic hurricanes in recent years, research shows.5 pm EDT - Tropical Storm #Imelda bringing tropical storm conditions and heavy rains to the central and northwestern Bahamas. Here are the Key Messages. Visit https://t.co/tW4KeGe9uJ for updates. pic.twitter.com/rG4PAlfyji— National Hurricane Center (@NHC_Atlantic) September 28, 2025 Editor's note: This is a breaking news story. Please check back for updates.