A man uses a metal detecter at the Virginia Beach boardwalk in Virginia Beach, Va., Sunday, Sept. 4, 2016.
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Despite Hermine churning off the East Coast this weekend, Sunday proved to be a picture-perfect day for the Lancaster region – and the outlook for Labor Day looks nearly as nice.
It’s expected to regain “hurricane force” on Sunday, as winds are expected to peak at 75 miles per hour.
(Vicki Cronis-Nohe /The Virginian-Pilot via AP).
Due to the warm waters off the East Coast and cold air, the storm has potential to strengthen still, the National Weather Service said.
Slow-moving Tropical Storm Hermine returned to near hurricane strength Saturday off the Atlantic coast bringing threats of deadly storm surge flooding during the Labor Day weekend from North Carolina to CT.
Sustained winds of 20 to 30 m.p.h. are forecasted with gusts between 40 and 50 m.p.h.
It’s expected to stall over the water before weakening again.
On Monday evening, Chief Meteorologist Bruce DePrest said part of New London saw a 54 miles per hour gust of wind, and the surrounding areas were seeing some gusty winds as well.
Saturday Governor Chris Christie declared a state of emergency for Ocean County, Atlantic County, and Cape May County.
The National Weather Service said a tropical storm warning remains in effect for New Jersey and DE, including Rehoboth Beach, which could experience wind gusts of up to 50 miles per hour and life-threatening storm surges during high tide late Sunday and into Monday. New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said they will remain off-limits to swimmers and surfers on Monday, too.
Hermine may not have rained on the city’s Labor Day Parade as predicted, but the storm is still bringing high winds and unsafe rip tides to the city, officials said.
The waves eroded some of the shore, creating sand dune cliffs where kids climbed. Residents in the county were being urged to evacuate their homes Sunday afternoon as high tide threatened to bring even more water. A rougher surf cleared portions of the beachfront.
Off shore winds will contribute to those conditions, Christie said.
Todd Solomon, who lives in an area of Virginia Beach that often floods, said water crept up to the foundations of some homes.
Hermine (her-MEEN) rose up over the Gulf of Mexico and hit Florida on Friday as a Category 1 hurricane before weakening to a tropical storm across Georgia.
The storm has damaged properties and left hundreds of thousands without electricity from Florida to Virginia.
Sea level rise caused by climate change could mean the damage wrought by Post-Tropical Cyclone Hermine will be even greater than previous surges, scientists warned this weekend. “And it’s only the beginning”.
“Moderate to locally major coastal flooding” is also expected along the East Coast, according to Weather.com.
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One person died Saturday when a tractor-trailer overturned while crossing a bridge in eastern North Carolina amid high winds from Hermine, a spokesman for the state’s Department of Public Safety, Michael Baker, said.
