Tropical Storm Chantal has made landfall near Litchfield Beach, SC, with maximum sustained winds of 50 mph as of 5 AM Sunday. Wind gusts in Southport reached 48 MPH according to NWS (peak wind gusts HERE). The rain gauge at the BHI Club shows 1.62 inches of rain in the last 24 hours. Chantal will move farther inland today and weaken through tonight. Chantal will bring a variety of impacts to portions of northeast SC & southeast NC, including heavy rainfall/some flooding, isolated tornadoes, gusty winds, and hazardous surf/maritime conditions.
As of the 5:30 AM NWS briefing, Bald Head Island (Brunswick County) remains under a tropical storm warning, a high surf advisory, and a flood watch. Watches, warnings, and advisories explained HERE.
Key takeaways from the latest NWS Wilmington office briefing (weather.gov/ilm/briefing) – – confidence is moderate to high regarding the following impacts:
- Winds to tropical storm force are expected, especially along coastal areas today. These winds could cause some power outages and downed trees/limbs.
- Flooding from heavy rainfall is possible, especially across some prone and low-lying areas, with the heaviest rainfall occurring through late this afternoon.
- There is a marginal risk of tornadoes across southeast North Carolina and portions of northeast South Carolina today.
- Dangerous marine/surf conditions are expected, along with strong rip currents through Sunday.
The next NWS briefing is expected at noon on July 6, 2025. Our Severe Weather Webpage (HERE) will be updated with the latest briefing info.
Village Response
The Village has been in communication with the BHI Club since 7/4 to coordinate and monitor island lagoon levels and the bypass lagoon levels, which are well below normal. Public Services has its stormwater systems ready. Service checks have been completed on the Village’s equipment. Weekend staff are on the island for immediate needs.
Village officials were briefed by Brunswick County Emergency Services and the National Weather Service in a meeting on 7/5 with the County’s partners (municipalities, utilities, agencies, etc.). Another briefing is scheduled for today (7/6).
Public Works crews are on the island today to clear any vegetation from the roads and address any immediate needs. As always, you can report any service needs via our online service request portal HERE.
Recommendations for Islanders
- Remain alert for updates from the NWS-Wilmington at weather.gov/ilm and find the latest weather briefing at weather.gov/ilm/briefing.
- Tie down and/or store any loose outdoor items that could be propelled by wind gusts, as these are still in the forecast for 7/6.
- Drive safely on the Village wynds the roads are slick, and there is ponding in several areas.
- Ferries appear to be running normally this morning (7/6). Check the Bald Head Island Ferry webpage or app for updates on ferry service.
- Swimming is not advised due to the high rip current risk, which will likely continue through early this week.
- Prepare for potential power outages; these could still occur today (7/6). Please report your outage to Duke Energy. You can also view the area outages (populated by customer reports) on the outage map. Duke Energy contact info and outage map info HERE.
Our Severe Weather Webpage (HERE) will be updated regularly throughout this event, and we will share relevant information from other agencies on our social media channels.