Tropical Depression Bonnie brings flooding to the US

Tropical Depression Bonnie has caused flooding along the coastline of Georgia and the Carolinas.

The storm came ashore to the east of Charleston, South Carolina at about 12:30 GMT on Sunday, before grinding to a halt.

As it remained over the region it continued to bring torrential rain. Ridgeland, a town about 100km to the west of Charleston, has already reported 208mm of rain and more is expected.

Fortunately, the winds are not proving to be too much of an issue. A combination of friction with the coast and strong winds in the upper atmosphere ensured the storm weakened before it made landfall.

This is quite early in the year for a storm to form. Bonnie developed on May 28, a few days earlier than the official start of the Atlantic Hurricane Season on June 1. However, it was not the first storm of the year.

A rare storm formed in the Atlantic in January. Tropical Storm Alex was only the fourth storm which is known to have developed in January since records began in 1851.

More rain is expected to drench the coast of the Carolinas before Bonnie eventually starts to move northeast during the day on Monday.