the minimum barometric pressure was considered too high. About an hour later, the National Hurricane Center noted that Bret was moving westward toward Virginia at 20 mph (25 km/h) and entering a region of colder sea surface temperatures, causing further intensification to become unlikely. Subsequently, the storm curved west-northwestward and rapidly weakened. At 0500 UTC on July 1, Bret made landfall near Oyster, Virginia on the Delmarva Peninsula as a minimal tropical storm. About an hour later, the storm emerged into the Chesapeake Bay and weakened to a tropical depression. Later on July 1, Bret moved inland over mainland Virginia and continued to weaken, until dissipating over the northern portion of the state. Preparations and impact In its early stages, the subtropical precursor of Bret tracked north of Bermuda and dropped light rainfall on the island, peaking at . While Bret was approaching the East Coast of the United States, various National Weather Service offices issued gale warnings. At 2000 UTC on June 30, a gale-force warning was issued for a portion of the North Carolina coastline extending from Cape Hatteras northward, including Albemarle and Pamlico sounds. Simultaneously, another gale warning was issued for areas along the Chesapeake Bay south of the Patuxent River in Maryland and on the east coast from Ocean City, Maryland to Virginia Beach, Virginia. Around 0300 UTC on July 1, all gale warnings were discontinued in North Carolina, while the remaining warnings in Maryland and Virginia were canceled about five hours later. Additionally, a small craft advisory was also posted for the North Carolina and Virginia coastlines. Officials in North Carolina closed off beaches at Nags Head, Kitty Hawk, and Kill Devil Hills from swimmers due to rip currents and tides. After Bret dissipated, the small craft warning remained in effect and mariners were told to remain in port until the weather calmed. In Virginia, Bret produced relatively light rainfall, peaking at in Big Meadows, a section of Shenandoah National Park. At the time of Bret's landfall, portions of the Mid-Atlantic states were experiencing a strong drought, though the amounts of precipitation were not enough for farmers in Virginia to save their crops. In Virginia Beach, local street flooding and a brief tornado were reported. Minor beach erosion occurred in the area due to tides reaching about above normal. One fatality was confirmed in North Carolina when a woman was killed after getting stuck in