Subtropical storm Ana could dampen Midlands weekend

The National Weather Service forecast tropical weather stretching from the coast into the Midlands as subtropical storm Ana makes its way up the east coast over the next two days.

The storm, upgraded to a subtropical storm by the National Weather Service Thursday night, formed off the South Carolina coast and prompted a tropical storm watch stretching from Edisto Beach, SC, to Cape Lookout, NC.

Sustained winds of more than 40-miles-an-hour are possible in the watch area and 2 to 4 inches of rain could drench the eastern portions of the state through the weekend, the weather service advisory forecast.

Life-threatening rip currents were reported along the South Carolina coast on Thursday prompting Horry County officials to close beaches to swimmers until further notice.

Rough seas were blamed for the grounding of a 36-foot sailboat Thursday morning on the Charleston Harbor jetties. A man and a woman were rescued by the US Coast Guard.

This story was originally published May 8, 2015 at 12:34 AM with the headline "Subtropical storm Ana could dampen Midlands weekend."