Tropical Storm Forms

August 12, 1985|United Press International

MIAMI — Tropical Storm Claudette formed in the mid-Atlantic Sunday and forecasters said slow strengthening was likely as the third storm of the 1985 hurricane season rambled farther away from the North Carolina coast.

John Jamison, a forecaster at the National Hurricane Center in Miami, said Claudette did not pose any immediate threat to land.

The disturbance was upgraded to a tropical storm and given a name Sunday when an Air Force reconnaissance plane reported its swirling winds had reached 40 mph.

At 10:30 p.m. EDT, Claudette`s center was near latitude 34.8 north, longitude 68.6 west, about 425 miles east of Cape Hatteras, N.C. The storm was moving eastward at 10 mph, away from the U.S. coast, and was expected to continue that motion through this morning.

``Claudette right now is moving slowly, away from the coastline, but some minor strengthening could occur during the next 12 to 24 hours,`` said Jamison.

Forecasters also monitored two tropical waves in the Caribbean. One just west of Jamaica was moving northward at 10 mph, and the other, about 300 miles east of the Leeward Islands, was moving toward the west at 15 to 20 mph.

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