Hurricane Erin, now a Category 4 storm, is not making landfall but is already sending dangerous surf and rip currents from Florida to New England. The massive storm gained strength quickly over the weekend, going from a tropical storm to a Category 5 in just over a day before easing back to a Category 4 after an eyewall replacement cycle.
“This is not the week to swim in the ocean,” warned Dare County Emergency Management in North Carolina, which issued a mandatory evacuation for Hatteras Island. “The risk from surf and flooding will be life-threatening.”
Erin’s impact is already being felt far from its center. Outer bands dumped rain across Puerto Rico, leaving 100,000 without power, according to Governor Jenniffer González-Colón. The Turks and Caicos Islands and parts of the Bahamas are now under tropical storm warnings and watches, with flash flooding and mudslides possible.
Even without a direct hit, the hurricane’s size is causing major concerns.
“Even though Erin is expected to remain far offshore, the threat to life from rip currents and high surf along our beaches is very real,” the National Weather Service in Morehead City, North Carolina, said.
Waves up to 20 feet are forecast, bringing extensive beach erosion, particularly along the Outer Banks. “Portions of N.C. Highway 12 on Hatteras Island will likely be impassable for several days,” officials said.
With beach crowds still heavy in August, officials are urging people to take rip current alerts seriously as the storm’s power continues through midweek.
