Tropical Storm Bertha Path, Map: Storm Makes Landfall in South Carolina, to Bring Heavy Rain to North Carolina, Virginia

Tropical Storm Bertha made landfall in South Carolina, and, although it's expected to quickly dissipate, the storm has the potential to cause life-threatening flash flooding.

Bertha, the second named storm to occur before Atlantic hurricane season officially starts on June 1, made landfall east of Charleston, South Carolina, on Wednesday morning. Within the next few hours, South Carolina's coast should experience strong winds and heavy rainfall could be seen in North Carolina and Virginia.

It's "unusual" but not unheard of to have two named storms before hurricane season starts, Dan Kottlowski, senior meteorologist and lead hurricane expert at AccuWeather told Newsweek. Having multiple pre-season storms doesn't "necessarily dictate the season," but Kottlowski said they fit into AccuWeather's forecast for the season.

"Everything's kind of falling into place," Kottlowski explained.

AccuWeather predicted there would be two to four early season storms and a total of 14 to 20 storms. Up to 11 of those storms were expected to be hurricanes, with as many as six being a category three or higher.

Ahead of Bertha's landfall, the National Hurricane Center (NHC) issued a tropical storm warning for South Carolina's coast from Edisto Beach to South Santee River. Moving at about nine miles per hour, the storm is expected to move inland across eastern and northern South Carolina and then into west-central North Carolina by Wednesday night. Bertha will likely have a short life span, as forecasters predicted the storm would weaken rapidly after moving inland and dissipate on Thursday.

Since the storm formed and moved inland so quickly, Kottlowski said had it occurred decades earlier, it may not have even been named. In the 1970s when meteorologists didn't have the advanced technology used today, poor radar may have prevented official from thinking of Bertha as a tropical storm. As technology improved, experts have been able to pick up on storms similar to Bertha faster, therefore reducing the likelihood a true tropical storm goes unnamed.

Although considered a "weak" storm with maximum sustained winds of only about 45 miles per hour, Bertha could bring up to four inches of rain in South Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia. Isolated totals could reach up to eight inches, and the NHC warned that the rainfall could produce life-threatening flash flooding.

Kottlowski acknowledged that preseason storms usually aren't as strong as those that occur in August, September and October—the peak of hurricane season. But, Bertha and Tropical Storm Arthur, which brushed the Outer Banks in North Carolina on May 18, show people need to have a hurricane plan in place, now.

"It really brings to light we've gotta get ready for this season," Kottlowski said. "This season could be a very, very active season, and I'm worried people are so preoccupied with the coronavirus that they might get overwhelmed."