Hanna downgraded, spreads rain across Georgia, Carolinas

ATLANTA - Tropical Storm Hanna was downgraded to a tropical depression Sunday after knocking out power lines and downing trees in a path across Alabama and Georgia. <br> <br> ``There&#39;s no real threat,&#39;&#39; said Jim Noffsinger, a National Weather Service forecaster. ``You&#39;re talking about something that&#39;s now only got 20 mph winds.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> Before dropping below tropical storm strength, defined as sustained winds of at least 39 mph, Hanna&#39;s heavy rain, wind and lightning had interrupted air travel, brought down tree limbs and caused power outages to about 48,000 homes. <br> <br> By Sunday, only a few areas were still without electricity, but rain from Hanna was still falling in parts of Georgia, Kentucky, Virginia and the Carolinas. <br> <br> Hanna&#39;s center, moving northeast at about 25 mph, was expected to move into South Carolina on Sunday night. <br> <br> ``They are probably looking forward to the rain. I know we were,&#39;&#39; Noffsinger said. Much of the southeast has been suffering through drought conditions for months. <br> <br> Hanna blew ashore Saturday in eastern Alabama with about 50 mph winds, dropping up to 5 inches of rain in the coastal area and the Florida Panhandle. <br> <br> It was the eighth tropical storm of the 2002 Atlantic hurricane season, which began June 1 and ends Nov. 30. Gustav, the season&#39;s only hurricane, did little damage when it grazed North Carolina&#39;s coast last week. <br> <br> In the Caribbean, the 10th tropical depression of the season formed near Trinidad with 30 mph wind, the National Hurricane Center said. It was moving west-northwest at 21 mph Sunday and could pass near the islands of Bonaire, Curacao and Aruba during the day, forecasters said.

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