ORLANDO, Fla. _ The second named tropical system of the year, Tropical Storm Bertha, formed Wednesday morning four days ahead the start of the 2020 hurricane season.
Bertha has maximum sustained winds of 45 mph and is 30 miles east of Charleston, South Carolina, according to the National Hurricane Center's 8:15 a.m. update.
The storm is not predicted to impact Florida, but a tropical storm warning is in effect for the coastal communities of South Carolina from Edisto Beach to South Santee River.
Bertha is expected to move inland over the course of the morning and across the eastern and northern portions of South Carolina and into west-central North Carolina area by Wednesday night.
Berth'a tropical-storm-force winds extend outward up to 25 miles from its center.
June 1st is the start of hurricane season, but already 2020 has had two named storms ahead of the official start with Arthur having formed earlier this month in the Atlantic. The early formations mark the sixth year in a row an early storm has formed.
Bertha's formation is the second time in the last five years where two tropical storms formed ahead of the season's start.
The only other year to experience this was 2016, which saw the formations of Hurricane Alex; which formed in January, and Tropical Storm Bonnie; which formed on May 27.
