Raleigh, N.C. — Tropical Storm Christobal churned waves on Carolina beaches raising
warnings in 11 coastal counties. The storm was circulating off the coast of South Carolina at 2 a.m. Sunday with sustained winds of about 45 mph.

The storm continues a slow drift to the north and east, and is not expected to make landfall, Chief Meteorologist Greg Fishel said. Rains from the system soaked Wilmington Saturday, with totals reaching 3 to 4 inches in some areas in the southeast of the state.

The outer bands of the storm reached as far west as Chatham County Saturday. Some areas of the Triangle saw significant rainfall – 2.5 inches of rain fell within an hour near Carrboro Saturday evening – while others got only dark clouds. Fishel reported no precipitation in City of Raleigh.

Sunday's forecast for the Triangle is similar. Christobal, which changed little throughout the evening and overnight hours, could re-organize as water and air heat up again through the day, bringing the chance of a repeat rain.

"The best chance of any showers and storms Sunday will be along and east of I-95, as Tropical Storm Christobal pulls out to sea," Fishel said.

Follow Cristobal's course with WRAL's StormTracker.

 Team coverage from the coast

WRAL News' coverage of Cristobal continues Sunday, with Erin Coleman in Atlantic Beach and Dan Bowens in the Outer Banks. 

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Are you prepared for Hurricane Season? Watch the "Storm Track 2008" special airing at 7 p.m. July 31 on WRAL-TV and WRAL.com.