Tropical Storm Chantal (2025)

Tropical Storm Chantal (/ʃɑːnˈtɑːl/ shahn-TAHL)^[2] was a tropical cyclone that impacted the Southeastern United States in July 2025. Chantal originated from a decaying frontal boundary over Florida. It then moved offshore into the Atlantic Ocean and rapidly organized into a tropical depression on July 4, before intensifying into a tropical storm, being assigned the name Chantal. The system steadily intensified until landfall early on July 6 in South Carolina, rapidly weakening into a tropical depression inland later that day.

Chantal produced tropical storm force-winds and gusts in northeastern South Carolina as it made landfall. Chantal produced heavy rainfall as it slowly moved into North Carolina, exceeding 10 inches (250 mm) in Alamance, Chatham, and Orange counties. Significant flash flooding took place across central North Carolina late on July 6.

On June 29, the NHC began monitoring a decaying frontal boundary along the southeastern United States coastline for potential tropical development.^[3] Early on July 4, a weak area of low pressure developed along the boundary, off the coast of northeastern Florida.^[4] Wind shear in the region was weak at the time, and sea surface temperatures were seasonably warm, around 82 to 84 °F (28 to 29 °C).^[5] That afternoon, the circulation associated with the low became well-defined and was designated Tropical Depression Three by the NHC.^[6] The system became better organized overnight, showing a significant burst of deep convection on GOES-19 infrared imagery,^[7] and strengthened to Tropical Storm Chantal at 12:00 UTC on July 5.^[8] That afternoon, the storm maintained a concentrated area of deep convection over the eastern half of its dense cloud cover, while moving slowly northward off the coast of the Carolinas against moderate wind shear.^[9] Early on July 6 at 06:00 UTC, Chantal briefly intensified to 60 mph (95 km/h),^[10] and turned north-northwestward, before making landfall near Litchfield Beach, South Carolina with maximum sustained winds of 50 mph (80 km/h) at approximately 08:00 UTC.^[11] The storm moved northward inland, weakening to tropical depression strength by late morning.^[12] On July 7, Chantal transitioned into a post-tropical cyclone over northern Virginia.^[13]

Upon formation on July 4, tropical storm watches were issued from Edisto Beach, South Carolina to Little River Inlet, also in South Carolina.^[14] On July 5, they were upgraded to tropical storm warnings from the South Santee River to Cape Fear.^[15] The warning was eventually extended north to Surf City.^[16] The South Carolina Department of Transportation moved crews to areas to be impacted by Chantal.^[17]

Tropical Storm Chantal increased the rip current threat off the Carolina coast.^[18] On July 4, 11 people had to be rescued due to rip currents.^[19] Lifeguards around Grand Strand performed rescues to people who went through the rough waters off the coast.^[20] A peak wind gust of 56 miles per hour (90 km/h) on Springmaid Pier, South Carolina was recorded.^[21] Around 4–6 inches (100–150 mm) of rainfall was measured in Horry County.^[22]

In North Carolina, as much as 11 inches (280 mm) of rain fell across the state.^[23][24] Four EF1 tornadoes and an EF0 tornado were also confirmed.^[25][26] About 8 inches (200 mm) fell in Moore County, resulting in the closure of two highways and two water rescues in Aberdeen. A Kohl's and a connecting shopping center were evacuated after a retaining wall failure caused flooding in Southern Pines. Another nearby dam failure damaged roads.^[27] A tree was also downed onto a home in Aberdeen.^[28] A state of emergency was issued for Moore County.^[23] An EF1 tornado in Sanford damaged two hangars and two aircraft at the Raleigh Executive Jetport, while toppling trees and power lines at a neighboring mobile home park.^[29] Another EF1 tornado was confirmed in Chatham County, where several water rescues also took place.^[30] Over 100 roads were damaged in or around Chatham County. One person was killed after their car was swept away by floodwaters.^[31] Additionally, two boaters went missing at Jordan Lake amidst the storm, one of whom was later found deceased.^[32][1]

Two other storm-related fatalities took place: one in Alamance County, and another in Orange County.^[33] A gas station near I-85 in Orange County was inundated by floodwaters.^[29] A state of emergency was declared by the county as a result of flooding.^[34] Voluntary evacuations were also issued in Mebane due to concerns of a dam failure.^[35] Rain from Chantal led to the Eno River rising to 25.64 feet (7.82 m), the highest ever recorded.^[36] As a result of the Eno River flooding, 80 people had to be rescued in Durham County.^[37] Another 50 were rescued in Chapel Hill.^[38] The Haw River in Burlington, North Carolina similarly rose to 32.5 feet (9.9 m), a few inches short of its record from Hurricane Fran.^[36] In Lee County, numerous mobile homes were destroyed and strong winds uprooted trees.^[39] A portion of NC 902 was shut down due to part of the road being washed away from the heavy rain and flooding.^[40] Parts of I-40 where partially shut down.^[41] According to Duke Energy, thousands of customers were left without power due to Chantal.^[42] Amtrak rail sevice was also temporarily shut down in the central part of North Carolina.^[43]

The predecessor to Chantal brought high humidity, cloudy conditions, and rain to Florida.^[44] Several celebrations for the United States' Independence Day were cancelled in Florida on July 3 as a result of rainfall from the predecessor to Chantal.^[45] Northeast Florida was also affected by rip currents from Chantal.^[46]

The Mid-Atlantic also experienced strong surf and rip tides.^[47] Flood watches were issued for several Mid-Atlantic states, extending as far north as New Jersey, as Chantal and remnant moisture affected the region between July 7–8.^[36][35][48] In addition, flash flood warnings were issued for several counties in southern and central Virginia.^[35] Strong wind gusts affected Maryland from thunder storms in association with Chantal's remnants on July 8, with peak gusts reaching 70 miles per hour (110 km/h) in Kingstown.^[48] More than 18,000 customers were affected by power outages across Maryland.^[49] A Baltimore Orioles and New York Mets game at Oriole Park was delayed due to the storms.^[50]

Up to 4.3 in (110 mm) of rain fell in the Philadelphia metropolitan area, and a ground stop was issued at Philadelphia International Airport on July 7.^[51] Part of Interstate 76 was flooded in Philadelphia. More than 35,000 people lost electricity in both New Jersey and Pennsylvania. Several trees were downed across New Jersey.^[48] A tornado warning was issued for parts of Monmouth and Ocean counties during the storm.^[52] New York experienced downpours and occasionally heavy rain in some spots of the NYC metropolitan area, lingering humidity caused by moisture associated with Chantal led to heat advisories issued across the Northeast Tri-state area.^[53][54] John F. Kennedy International Airport saw 29 flight cancellations and over 200 delays on July 7 due to the threat of impacts from Chantal’s remnants.^[55] Storms downed several trees and power lines in Bantam and Litchfield, Connecticut.^[56]

• Weather of 2025
• Tropical cyclones in 2025
• List of storms of the same name
• Tropical Storm Ana (2015)
• Tropical Storm Bertha (2020)
• Tropical Storm Ophelia (2023)