Tropical Storm Danny Makes Landfall in South Carolina Late Monday

Posted: June 29, 2021 11:24 am

Tropical Storm Danny made landfall in South Carolina late Monday evening after quickly developing in the waters of the Atlantic Ocean during the afternoon hours. Danny became the fourth named storm of the 2021 Atlantic hurricane season after its rapid intensification cycle. Tropical Storm Danny developed just hours after it was named Tropical Depression Four on Monday morning.

Image Provided by NOAA
Remnants of Danny 

Tropical Storm Danny Details

Danny made landfall slightly to the north of Hilton Head on Pritchards Island, South Carolina. When Danny came to shore, it was packing maximum sustained winds of about 65 mph. It did not take long for the storm to lose intensity and downgrade to a tropical depression once it moved across the land. By the late-night hours, the storm was delivering wind speeds of about 35 mph.

As it moved across land, the storm was traveling at a speed of about 16 mph to the west and northwest.

Forecasters at the National Hurricane Center (NHC) were forced to issue last-minute tropical storm warnings along the South Carolina coast, stretching from Edisto Beach to the South Santee River. However, these warnings expired once the storm began to lose its strength as it met land.

The reason that the storm intensified at such a rapid speed is that it was able to find the warm waters of the Gulf Stream as it continued to churn in the Atlantic early Monday.

As it moved closer to the coast, Danny dumped rain over a large area of Georgia and South Carolina. Some areas saw up to five inches of rain from the outer bands of the storm. The far reaches of the storm were felt into Florida and North Carolina.

Heavy Rains Forecast for Tuesday

Despite being downgraded to a tropical depression, the system is expected to bring downpours and thunderstorms to the region throughout the day Tuesday. This rain and severe weather will move farther inland throughout the day and evening hours, bringing significant precipitation to the southern Appalachians and the Tennessee Valley.

Major cities in the path of the remnants of Danny include Atlanta, Huntsville and Birmingham, Alabama; and Chattanooga, Tennessee.

Elsewhere in the Atlantic Ocean

While Danny grabbed the headlines early this week, forecasters are keeping a close eye on an additional area of low pressure that is circulating within a tropical wave now sitting in the eastern Atlantic Ocean. This low is causing a series of heavy rain showers and thunderstorms. Designated as Invest 95L, this low has the potential of developing into a tropical depression as it continues to move through the warm ocean waters.

The low will likely bring gusty winds and heavy rain to the Lesser Antilles and parts of the northwestern Caribbean even if it never reaches tropical storm status.

The Latest on Enrique

Over in the eastern Pacific, what was once Hurricane Enrique is continuing to deliver heavy rains to southern Mexico. Current models show the system potentially making landfall along the southern tip of Baja California. While any landfall possibility will be in a weakened state compared to what Enrique once was, it will still bring the potential of heavy rain to the tourist region.

In addition, some of the remaining moisture from Enrique may be pulled into the southwestern corner of the US later this week and into the weekend. Even the smallest amount of rain will provide benefits to this drought-stricken region of the US.