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Storm Watch On As Tropical Storm Beryl Moves North

Posted on: Thursday, 20 July 2006, 02:25 CDT

MIAMI -- Southeastern Massachusetts was under a storm watch on Thursday as Tropical Storm Beryl, the second cyclone of the 2006 Atlantic hurricane season, headed north after sparing North Carolina.

The storm, which formed on Tuesday, strengthened as it moved over warmer waters in the Atlantic Ocean and its maximum sustained winds were at 60 miles per hour (97 km per hour), the U.S. National Hurricane Center said in a bulletin.

Beryl's center was about 235 miles south of New York and about 320 miles southwest of Nantucket, Massachusetts, at 2 a.m. (0600 GMT), and was moving northward at around 9 mph (15 kmh).

Some further strengthening was possible on Thursday morning, with weakening expected later in the day, the Miami-based hurricane center said. It said the storm watch could be upgraded to a warning in some areas.

The tropical storm posed no threat to U.S. oil and gas facilities in the Gulf of Mexico.

A storm watch for the North Carolina coast was lifted earlier on Wednesday as the storm moved past the state well out to sea.

The new watch, warning residents they could see storm conditions within 36 hours, was in effect from Plymouth southward and westward to Woods Hole, including the vacation destinations of Cape Cod, Nantucket Island and Martha's Vineyard.

Beryl's core was still expected to stay out to sea. But the southeastern Massachusetts coast was within the area that could be affected by the storm.

Forecasters expect a busy June 1-November 30 hurricane season this year, with up to 17 tropical storms. Last year's season saw a record 28 tropical storms, 15 of which strengthened into hurricanes with winds of at least 74 mph (119 kph).

The first tropical storm of the 2006 season, Alberto, came harmlessly ashore in the Florida Panhandle on June 13. Tropical storms rarely pose a threat to developed countries with sound building standards although they can cause torrential rain.

But Florida officials did not let their guard down for Alberto and even ordered evacuations -- with memories still fresh of the destruction during caused by monster storms such as Hurricanes Katrina, Rita and Wilma last year.

Katrina, the costliest natural disaster in U.S. history, devastated New Orleans and killed more than 1,300 people.

Source: REUTERS

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