Tropical Storm Andrea pounds parts of Florida

Cory Dunbar, a Neptune Beach Lifeguard, checks the surf outside the station at the end of Atlantic Blvd. in Neptune Beach, Fla. Thursday, June 6, 2013. Tropical Storm Andrea, the first named storm of the Atlantic season, hammered Florida with rain, heavy winds, and tornadoes Thursday as it moved toward the coast of Georgia and the Carolinas, promising sloppy commutes and waterlogged vacation getaways through the beginning of the weekend. AP/The Florida Times-Union, Bob Mack

Forecasters say Tropical Storm Andrea is weakening slowly as it crosses over Florida toward Georgia and the Carolinas.

The first named storm of the Atlantic season hammered Florida with rain, heavy winds, and tornadoes Thursday. It promised sloppy commutes and waterlogged vacation getaways through the beginning of the weekend.

The National Hurricane Center in Miami said that as of 11 p.m. Thursday, Andrea was 40 miles (64 kilometers) west of Jacksonville, Florida, and had maximum sustained winds of 45 mph (72 kph). It was moving northeast at 15 mph (24 kph).

Forecasters have discontinued the tropical storm warning for the west coast of Florida.

A tropical storm warning remains in effect along the East Coast, from Flagler Beach, Florida, to Cape Charles Light, Virginia. A warning also covers the Pamlico and Albemarle Sounds and the Lower Chesapeake Bay south of New Point Comfort.

Forecasters say heavy rains continue well away from the storm's center.

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