Julia becomes tropical storm again as it mills off East Coast

(Reuters) – Julia regained its designation as a tropical storm as it milled off the southeast coast of the United States on Friday, the National Hurricane Center said in an advisory.

The center of the storm, which drenched parts of northeast Florida, Georgia and South Carolina earlier this week, was not threatening land as it moved east-southeast about 270 miles (435 km) southwest of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, the Miama-based center said.

Tropical Storm Julia, carrying winds of 40 mph (65 kph) with higher gusts, was expected to cause rip currents and hazardous wave conditions along the southeastern coast through the weekend, the center said.

(Reporting by Brendan O’Brien in Milwaukee; Editing by Paul Tait)