Tropical Storm Beryl makes landfall

SAVANNAH, GA (WTOC) - Tropical Storm Beryl made landfall at 12:10 a.m. Monday near Jacksonville Beach, Fla., with 70 mph MAX winds. Savannah was missed by a tropical system again – mostly.

Tybee Island wind gusts approaching 40 mph, sustained in the mid-30s with beach erosion, and closed beaches during to horrible and dangerous rip currents. Savannah winds are gusting to 37 mph, just short of tropical-storm-force. Locally heavy rainfall with a half-an-inch in less than five minutes.

More rain and more winds will be coming. Some of the strongest gusts were in the initial bands. Beryl got smaller in size approach land due to new dry air pulled into the system from the upper levels, so most of the strongest gusts stayed south of Interstate 16 with the heaviest squalls over our southern coastal counties from Darien to Jacksonville.

More squalls will continue to develop, probably enough to wipeout some holiday plans, but the latest guidance suggests lighter rainfall and more dry periods after 11 a.m. Monday, according to WTOC Meteorologist John Wetherbee.

There's one issue unresolved: what happens to Beryl from here?  The storm will move inland very slowing now being blocked by high pressure over the Gulf.  The official forecast track said the storm will stay a tropical storm over northeast Florida until Monday afternoon dumping up to 8 inches of rain.

Then a new Pacific trough (firing up severe weather across the Midwest late Sunday) will catch the remnants of Beryl and drive her right across Savannah on Tuesday, as a tropical depression, according to Wetherbee.  More rain, just not as squally. By Wednesday, Beryl is expected to become a renewed tropical storm off of the North Carolina coast.

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