Tropical Storm Julia Dumping Rain on Georgia

Tropical Storm Julia was dumping rain on southeast Georgia Wednesday morning, as the surprise storm slowly worked its way up the state's coastline.

Julia surprised storm watchers, strengthening suddenly late Tuesday and, atypically, picking up enough power to become a tropical storm while over land in north Florida.

At 8 a.m. Wednesday, the center of the storm was located about 10 miles west of Brunswick.

It was making its way north at about 7 mph, with sustained winds of 40 mph and stronger gusts.

But the biggest impact Julia was expected to have in Georgia was the amount of rain it was dropping.

The storm is expected to produce 3-6 inches of rain along the Georgia coast through Friday afternoon, with isolated totals as high as 10 inches, the National Hurricane Center said.

The rainfall could lead to flash floods in some areas. Flood warnings were issued for eight counties along the coast, from Camden in the south to Effingham to the north, according to the Georgia Emergency Management Agency.

Hurricane Center forecasters also warned that isolated tornadoes are possible in coastal and southeast Georgia.

About 1,000 Georgians were without power Wednesday morning, mainly in a band up the state's coast, according to Georgia Power's outage map.

As the storm continues over land Wednesday, it's expected to weaken.

It's expected to slow down and wind speed will slow, downgrading to a tropical depression by late Wednesday, according to the center.

Julia is 2016's 10th named storm and the sixth tropical storm in the Atlantic.

Image via National Hurricane Center