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The National Hurricane Center says Tropical Storm Ophelia has formed off the US mid-Atlantic coast. It's expected to deliver heavy rain, flooding and high winds to communities across North Carolina and the Chesapeake Bay.

It weakened to a tropical storm but still packed 60-mph winds as it raced into Georgia and then into South Carolina. In Charleston, a surge from Idalia topped the seawall that protects the downtown, sending ankle-deep ocean water into wealthy and famous neighborhoods.

The National Weather Service says Hurricane Idalia will bring heavy rain and winds to the Triangle on Thursday. Some places south of Raleigh can expect wind gusts of up to 40 mph at times.

Tuesday's severe thunderstorms caused damages, outages, car accidents, and road closures. One 78-year-old Durham woman died after a tree fell on her car.

NOAA is increasing how many storms forecasters expect, calling for between 14 to 21 named storms with six to 11 storms becoming hurricanes. Of those hurricanes, NOAA predicts two to five will become major hurricanes with winds of more than 110 mph.

Monday’s storms spawned tornado watches and warnings in 10 states, with around 30 million people under a tornado watch in the afternoon. Forecasters received more than 900 reports of wind damage, including nearly 300 from North Carolina and South Carolina, according to the Storm Prediction Center.

Wildfires burning in Canada have left states, like North Carolina, with smoky summer skies and fluctuating air quality.

The EPA advises keeping outdoor activities light and short when air quality indexes reach above 150 on the agency’s map. On Monday afternoon, Greensboro, N.C. was included on that map.

State and weather officials gave tips about how to ready for severe weather during the annual statewide tornado drill.

Much of central North Carolina – from north of Fayetteville, to Greensboro, to Rocky Mount – is under a Level 3 Enhanced Risk for severe weather, according to the National Weather Service’s scale.