Earl's Not Coming

It's September. Storms are spinning out in the Atlantic. Earl. Fiona.

Will they spoil your last chance for big summer fun during the Labor Day weekend?

Simple answer: no.

If you're planning to head to Myrtle Beach, SC for a little golf, come on down.

Heading to the Wilmington/Cape Fear Coast, NC- area beaches for a little last-minute surf and sun R &R? No problem. Carolina Beach, Kure Beach and Wrightsville Beach are all in for a beautiful weekend.

It will even be a good time to stroll around historic Wilmington and take in the sites.

While national weather reporters make it sound like the Carolinas' coast is a pretty compact area, the coast along the two states is literally hundreds of miles long.

Sure, Earl is making a beeline for the Outer Banks of NC and beyond. He's steaming toward the NC/Virginia border. But, thankfully, that means he'll pass by Myrtle Beach and Wilmington and hardly be noticed. Plenty of room. Only a little wind and rain on Thursday are expected.

And Fiona? Well, she's already fizzling out.

By Friday, all will be blue skies between Wilmington, NC and Myrtle Beach, SC. A perfect weekend.

Need a little proof? Here's a local weatherman's take on the situation.

Now, didn't we all learn long ago that the national TV reporters are all about the drama?

Happily, local weathermen along the southern NC coast and northern SC coast have a lot more at stake when they discuss a storm. They don't deal in drama, but they do deal in facts. If there's drama to be had, you can bet they'll be the first to sound the alert. And, if there's no drama, they don't stir up anxieties.

They've got much more at stake than ratings. You see, their lives and the lives of their families and friends could depend on their forecasts.

So when they tell you it's okay to come to their beaches this weekend, relax. Pack the family into the car and come on down. Because you can take their forecasts to the bank.