Tropical storm Bertha forms off US Atlantic coast

Tropical storm Bertha formed off the coast of the southeastern United States on Wednesday, becoming the second named storm to emerge before the official start of the Atlantic hurricane season, US weather trackers said.

Bertha was packing maximum sustained winds of 45 miles per hour (75 kph), but was expected to weaken into a tropical depression as it crosses into South Carolina, the National Hurricane Center said.

The first named storm of the season was Arthur, a tropical storm that tracked along the coasts of Florida and the Carolinas two weeks ago without inflicting major damage.

Weather records show only four previous years in which two such storms formed before the start of the season -- 1887, 1908, 1951 and 2012, according to a Twitter post by Colorado State University meteorologist Philip Klotzbach.

Last week, the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) predicted that this year's Atlantic hurricane season would be more active than usual.

According to NOAA's projection, the season will see between 13 and 19 named storms -- those with winds of 39 mph (63 kph) or greater -- with three to six of them becoming Category 3 hurricanes with winds of 110 mph (178 kph) or greater.

Florida, meanwhile, endured its fourth consecutive day of heavy rains, which have caused flooding and thwarted plans for reopening restaurants and some beaches that have been closed for two months because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Images circulated on social media of cars with water up to their windshields and people navigating the streets of Miami in kayaks, or surfing in the wake of all-terrain vehicles.

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