Dangerous flooding from Tropical Storm Arthur, first of the Atlantic season, threatens Gulf Coast

COVINGTON, La. (AP) — Tropical Storm Arthur formed off the Texas coast on Wednesday as the first tropical storm of the season in the Atlantic basin, threatening a wide swath of the Gulf Coast with potentially dangerous flooding even as it was expected to quickly weaken.The center of the storm by Wednesday afternoon had appeared to move inland in southeast Texas, but Arthur's impacts were set to be felt well beyond, according to the National Hurricane Center in Miami. Maximum sustained winds were around 40 mph (64 kph), and the storm was expected to lose strength as it moved further over land.Officials urged millions of people along the Gulf Coast to take the storm seriously amid warnings that the storm could dump dangerous amounts of rain in some areas. In Louisiana and Mississippi, some communities set up locations for residents to collect sandbags and cleared debris from drainage systems.“The main threat from Arthur is going to be a prolonged, multiday, heavy rainfall event that coul