Hurricane Olivia (2018)

Hurricane Olivia was a minimal hurricane that meandered off the coast of the Southeastern United States for nine days, causing moderate damage in several states. It was the fifteenth named tropical cyclone and the ninth hurricane of the 2018 Atlantic hurricane season.

Meteorological history
Hurricane Olivia originated from a cold-core low that persisted northeast of the Bahamas. The cold-core low gradually developed to the surface, and on September 12, a low pressure area formed within a surface trough over the western Atlantic Ocean. Outflow from the nearby Hurricane Michaela initially inhibited development as the low drifted west, but by 0600 UTC on September 15, convection in the system had sufficiently organized to warrant designation as Subtropical Depression Sixteen while positioned about 238 mi (383 km) east of Edgewater, Florida. Conditions improved as the depression meandered north, and the JMC upgraded it to a subtropical storm at 1500 UTC that same day, assigning it the name Olivia. As the storm moved erratically to the west-northwest toward the North Carolina-South Carolina border over the next two days, it slowly strengthened, acquiring more tropical characteristics. Early on September 17, a poorly organized band of stronger winds developed around the center, and Olivia was designated a fully tropical storm.

A ridge to Olivia's north weakened in response to a passing frontal trough, and the tropical storm accelerated to the north. Olivia reached a initial peak of 55 mph (89 km/h) winds just before coming ashore at Shell Island near Wilmington, North Carolina on September 18. As the frontal trough left the area, the building ridge to Olivia's north forced the storm to turn to the south and southeast. After executing a cyclonic loop off the North Carolina coast, the ridge to the north began to erode, allowing Olivia to track northeast to the open Atlantic.

A developing high pressure system soon caused Olivia to execute a tight clockwise loop from September 21 to the 22nd, setting North Carolina in the storm's projected path once again. The storm strengthened as it completed the loop and shifted northwest, reaching hurricane intensity late on September 22. Olivia reached its peak intensity on September 23 with sustained winds of 80 mph (130 km/h) as it continued its approach to North Carolina, making landfall at Cape Lookout that afternoon. The hurricane steadily weakened as it moved inland, and dissipated completely the following day.