 Due to a combination of north @-@ northwesterly shear and lower sea surface temperatures , Florence again weakened on September 13 and was downgraded to a tropical storm . After moving erratically for almost five days , Florence accelerated east @-@ northeastward in response to a short @-@ wave trough on September 15 . The storm soon began to re @-@ intensify , becoming a hurricane early on September 16 . Shortly thereafter , Florence curved northeastward . However , colder sea surface temperatures weakened it to a tropical storm September 17 . Early on the following day , Florence was absorbed by an extratropical low near Newfoundland . Rip current along the East Coast of the United States drowned three people in North Carolina . Tropical storm force winds were reported in Bermuda , though no damage occurred . 
