Tropical Storm Arthur is the first named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season

Weather Tropical Storm Arthur is the first named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season June 17, 202612:43 PM ET By  Bill Chappell Tropical Storm Arthur, seen here in a satellite image from Wednesday morning, is the first named storm of the Atlantic season, bringing the threat of dangerous floods along the northern coast of the Gulf of Mexico. The National Hurricane Center predicts the system will not strengthen much before making landfall. NOAA/NESDIS/STAR GOES-19 hide caption toggle caption NOAA/NESDIS/STAR GOES-19 Tropical Storm Arthur is the first named storm of the Atlantic hurricane season, and it's already bringing heavy rains to the northwestern Gulf Coast. Arthur is currently 40 miles east-northeast of Port Connor, Texas, according to a National Hurricane Center advisory. Arthur's maximum sustained winds are 40 mph, just above the 39 mph threshold for a tropical storm. The storm is not expected to strengthen significantly, but forecasters warn of dangerous flash floods and urban flooding. Arthur is moving northeast and is expected to move inland over southwestern Louisiana by Wednesday night. Sponsor Message Weather Forecasters expect slightly fewer hurricanes than usual this year, but the risk of destructive storms is still high "Tropical Storm Arthur is expected to produce rainfall totals of 5 to 10 inches, with isolated higher totals near 20 inches, through early Friday" along a large part of the U.S. coast of the Gulf of Mexico, the hurricane center said in its advisory. Arthur is expected to dissipate Wednesday night or early Thursday. But NHC Director Michael Brennan said in an online briefing that for areas hundreds of miles inland, rain is the slow-moving system's biggest danger. "The main threat from Arthur is going to be a prolonged multi-day heavy rainfall event that could produce dangerous to life-threatening flash flooding," Brennan said. Behind him, a screen showed that areas from the Texas coast to South Georgia were under flood watch ad...