Tropical Storm Bonnie was a weak but persistent

tropical cyclone A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system characterized by a low-pressure center, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls. Depen ...

that brought heavy

rain Rain is water droplets that have condensed from atmospheric water vapor and then fall under gravity. Rain is a major component of the water cycle and is responsible for depositing most of the fresh water on the Earth. It provides water ...

s to the

Southeastern United States The Southeastern United States, also referred to as the American Southeast or simply the Southeast, is a geographical region of the United States. It is located broadly on the eastern portion of the southern United States and the southern por ...

in May 2016. The second storm of the season, Bonnie formed from an

area of low pressure In meteorology, a low-pressure area, low area or low is a region where the atmospheric pressure is lower than that of surrounding locations. Low-pressure areas are commonly associated with inclement weather (such as cloudy, windy, with possible ...

northeast of the

Bahamas The Bahamas (), officially the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, is an island country within the Lucayan Archipelago of the West Indies in the North Atlantic. It takes up 97% of the Lucayan Archipelago's land area and is home to 88% of the ar ...

on May 27, a few days before the official hurricane season began on June 1. Moving steadily west-northwestwards, Bonnie intensified into a tropical storm on May 28 and attained peak winds six hours later. However, due to hostile environmental conditions, Bonnie weakened to a depression hours before making

landfall Landfall is the event of a storm moving over land after being over water. More broadly, and in relation to human travel, it refers to 'the first land that is reached or seen at the end of a journey across the sea or through the air, or the fact ...

just east of Charleston, South Carolina, on May 29. Steering currents collapsed afterwards, causing the storm to meander over South Carolina for two days. The storm weakened further into a post-tropical cyclone on May 31, before emerging off the coast while moving generally east-northeastwards. On June 2, Bonnie regenerated into a tropical depression just offshore

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and ...

as conditions became slightly more favorable. The next day, despite increasing

wind shear Wind shear (or windshear), sometimes referred to as wind gradient, is a difference in wind speed and/or direction over a relatively short distance in the atmosphere. Atmospheric wind shear is normally described as either vertical or horizont ...

and cooling

sea surface temperature Sea surface temperature (SST), or ocean surface temperature, is the ocean temperature close to the surface. The exact meaning of ''surface'' varies according to the measurement method used, but it is between and below the sea surface. Air mas ...

s, Bonnie reintensified into a tropical storm and reached its peak intensity. The storm hung on to tropical storm strength for another day, before weakening into a depression late on June 4 and became post-tropical early the next day. Lingering over South Carolina for a few days, Bonnie brought heavy rains and widespread floods to the Southeastern United States. Rainfall totals hit in much of South Carolina, and exceeded in some areas. Flooding resulted in the closure of the southbound lanes of Interstate 95 in Jasper County, and also inundated the Jasper County Sheriff's Office and Detention Center. In Ridgeland, several buildings were damaged and the local wastewater treatment plant overflowed, spilling discharge into the nearby Captain Bill Creek. Damage in this county alone exceeded $640,000 (2016

USD The United States dollar (symbol: $; code: USD; also abbreviated US$ or U.S. Dollar, to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; referred to as the dollar, U.S. dollar, American dollar, or colloquially buck) is the official ...

). Record-breaking rainfall was observed across much of the

Outer Banks The Outer Banks (frequently abbreviated OBX) are a string of barrier islands and spits off the coast of North Carolina and southeastern Virginia, on the east coast of the United States. They line most of the North Carolina coastline, separating ...

; on

Hatteras Island Hatteras Island (historically Croatoan Island) is a barrier island located off the North Carolina coast. Dividing the Atlantic Ocean and the Pamlico Sound, it runs parallel to the coast, forming a bend at Cape Hatteras. It is part of North Carol ...

, Cape Point Campground was closed for a week due to flooding. Two people drowned in

rip current A rip current, often simply called a rip (or misleadingly a ''rip tide''), is a specific kind of water current that can occur near beaches with breaking waves. A rip is a strong, localized, and narrow current of water which moves directly away ...

s along the coastline of the Southeast United States.

Meteorological history

On May 24, the National Hurricane Center (NHC) began monitoring an area of disturbed weather resulting from the interaction of a weakening

cold front A cold front is the leading edge of a cooler mass of air at ground level that replaces a warmer mass of air and lies within a pronounced surface trough of low pressure. It often forms behind an extratropical cyclone (to the west in the Northern ...

and an upper-level trough. A surface

formed late the next day, and the low eventually gained sufficient organization to be declared a

tropical depression A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system characterized by a low-pressure center, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls. Depend ...

at 18:00 UTC on May 27. At the time, the depression was located about southeast of Charleston, South Carolina, and moving west-northwestwards in response to a low over the northwestern

and a ridge near the coast of

. Strong vertical

and dry air in the region hindered strengthening, however, the depression was located over the warm waters of the Gulf Stream. In the afternoon of May 28, a burst of deep

convection Convection is single or multiphase fluid flow that occurs spontaneously due to the combined effects of material property heterogeneity and body forces on a fluid, most commonly density and gravity (see buoyancy). When the cause of the conve ...

developed near the northwestern part of the exposed

low-level circulation center The eye is a region of mostly calm weather at the center of tropical cyclones. The eye of a storm is a roughly circular area, typically in diameter. It is surrounded by the ''eyewall'', a ring of towering thunderstorms where the most severe weat ...

(LLCC), and the NHC upgraded the depression to Tropical Storm Bonnie. Despite strong southerly

exposing the LLCC, Bonnie intensified slightly to reach its initial peak intensity with winds of as it turned towards the north. However, the continued effects of high wind shear and dry air caused the cyclone's appearance to significantly degrade early on May 29, as deep convection dissipated due to more than of southerly shear. Bonnie weakened back to tropical depression strength about half an hour prior to its

just east of Charleston, South Carolina. Caught in weak steering currents, the depression meandered over South Carolina for over a day before degenerating to a remnant low over the northeastern portion of the state at 12:00 UTC on May 30. The remnant circulation continued to move slowly and erratically as it emerged off the coast on May 31, before accelerating east-northeastwards and reintensifying slightly. Amidst light wind shear and high

sea surface temperatures Sea surface temperature (SST), or ocean surface temperature, is the ocean temperature close to the surface. The exact meaning of ''surface'' varies according to the measurement method used, but it is between and below the sea surface. Air mas ...

(SSTs), organization improved as convection persisted near the center, and Bonnie regenerated into a tropical depression at 00:00 UTC on June 2. The next day, despite worsening conditions, a burst of convection around the center led to Bonnie restrengthening into a tropical storm, simultaneously attaining a new minimum pressure of . Increasing northwesterly shear and cooling SSTs soon became evident as the LLCC became exposed to the west, however Bonnie continued to maintain tropical storm strength. On the afternoon of June 4, Bonnie began to succumb to the unfavorable conditions, and the storm weakened into a tropical depression. Early the next day, Bonnie degenerated once more into a post-tropical cyclone as it tracked east-southeastward over the Atlantic Ocean. The storm eventually transitioned to an extratropical cyclone on June 7, and eventually dissipated south-southwest of the Azores, just after 18:00 UTC on June 9.

Preparations, impact, and records

Upon formation, a

tropical storm warning Tropical cyclone warnings and watches are alerts issued by national weather forecasting bodies to coastal areas threatened by the imminent approach of a tropical cyclone of tropical storm or hurricane intensity. They are notices to the local popul ...

was issued, covering the Savannah River to the Little River Inlet in South Carolina. These were discontinued when Bonnie weakened to a depression at 8:00 a.m. EDT (12:00 UTC) on May 29. Total rainfall accumulations in South Carolina from Bonnie peaked at in Ridgeland. The heavy rains affected several coastal businesses expecting high numbers of tourists over the

Memorial Day Memorial Day (originally known as Decoration Day) is a federal holiday in the United States for mourning the U.S. military personnel who have fought and died while serving in the United States armed forces. It is observed on the last Monda ...

weekend. The heavy rains led to significant flooding, prompting the

South Carolina Highway Patrol The South Carolina Highway Patrol is the highway patrol agency for South Carolina, which has jurisdiction anywhere in the state except for federal or military installations. The Highway Patrol was created in 1930 and is an organization with a ran ...

to close at least seven roads in Jasper County, including the southbound lanes of Interstate 95. Other road closures occurred in Dorchester and

Hampton Hampton may refer to: Places Australia *Hampton bioregion, an IBRA biogeographic region in Western Australia *Hampton, New South Wales *Hampton, Queensland, a town in the Toowoomba Region * Hampton, Victoria Canada * Hampton, New Brunswick *Ha ...

counties, after flooding rendered them impassible. Across Jasper County, four buildings sustained major damage and ten others experienced minor damage, primarily within the town of Ridgeland. Water inundated both the Jasper County Sheriff's Office and Detention Center, prompting the relocation of one-third of its inmates. Ridgeland's wastewater treatment plant overflowed, spilling 75,000 to 100,000 gallons (280,000 to 380,000 liters) of discharge into the nearby Captain Bill Creek. Bonnie is estimated to have caused about $640,000 (2016

) worth of damage in Jasper County alone, mainly in Ridgeland. At Charleston International Airport, a sustained wind of and a gust to were observed; these were the highest recorded windspeeds related to the cyclone on land. In

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

, precipitation reached at Oliver. In Bulloch County, several roads were inundated or closed due to high water. Some ponds exceeded their banks. Heavy rainfall, record-breaking in some areas, was observed in much of the

. Precipitation peaked at at the Billy Mitchell Airport in Hatteras. At that location, of rain fell on May 30, breaking the old record set in 1940. Furthermore, a new monthly rainfall record for the month of May was observed— of rain fell during that month. At least of rain fell on

, resulting in the closure of Cape Point Campground and its online reservation system for a week. Several beach ramps were inundated with at least of standing water and some were rendered impassible, however none were closed. Tropical Storm Colin would later combine with Bonnie to produce at least of standing water in farmlands in Hyde and Beaufort counties, damaging newly planted crops. Further north, Bonnie dumped of rain in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

. Swells generated by Bonnie created an elevated risk of

s along the coastline of the Southeastern United States. Several water rescues were carried out. A 21-year-old man went missing at Carolina Beach on May 28; his body was recovered in

New Hanover County, North Carolina New Hanover County is one of 100 counties located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 225,702. Though the second-smallest NC county in land area, it is one of the most populous, as its county seat, Wi ...

, three days later. Further south, the body of a 20-year-old man was recovered in

Brevard County, Florida Brevard County ( ) is a county located in the east central portion of the U.S. state of Florida. As of the 2020 census, the population was 606,612, making it the 10th-most populated county in Florida. The official county seat is located in ...

, after he drowned. When Bonnie formed on May 27, it became the first occurrence of two pre-season Atlantic storms since

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gat ...

, and only the second occurrence since

1951 Events January * January 4 – Korean War: Third Battle of Seoul – Chinese and North Korean forces capture Seoul for the second time (having lost the Second Battle of Seoul in September 1950). * January 9 – The Government of the United ...

(the third occurring in 2020). The first storm, Alex, had formed in January.

References

External links

The NHC's advisory archive for Tropical Storm BonnieThe WPC's public advisory archive for Tropical Storm Bonnie
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bonnie (2016) Atlantic tropical storms 2016 Atlantic hurricane season Hurricanes in South Carolina Hurricanes in North Carolina Off-season Atlantic tropical cyclones Tropical Storm Bonnie (2016) Tropical Storm Bonnie (2016)

Bonnie Bonnie, is a Scottish given name and is sometimes used as a descriptive reference, as in the Scottish folk song, My Bonnie Lies over the Ocean. It comes from the Scots language word "bonnie" (pretty, attractive), or the French bonne (good). That ...

Meteorological history

Preparations, impact, and records

See also

References

External links