Hurricane Erin is taking a turn to the northeast and moving away from the coast of North Carolina as rip currents remain a threat in the area, and beachgoers are warned to stay out of the water.
Flooding along the North Carolina and Mid-Atlantic coast remains a threat in connection with the Category 2 storm, the National Hurricane Center said in an 8 a.m. EDT advisory.
The hurricane center maintained its tropical storm warning for Beaufort Inlet, North Carolina, to Chincoteague, Virginia. A tropical storm watch is in effect for Bermuda, and storm surges are possible on the coast.
The highest high tide will occur on Thursday evening along the Outer Banks, when storm surge inundation of 2 to 4 feet will be most likely. Farther north, inundation of 1 to 3 feet will be possible from Duck, North Carolina, to Sandy Hook, New Jersey.
Dangerous rip currents and coastal flooding will remain threats in the area into early Saturday. As of 3:30 a.m. on Thursday, the National Weather Service in Wilmington, North Carolina, said rip currents were continuing due to increased swells.
Erin has maximum sustained winds of 105 mph and is 210 miles east-southeast of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, moving north-northeast at 17 mph. It should weaken gradually over the next couple of days, the hurricane center said.
The storm is expected to gain speed as it moves out to sea Thursday and into Friday, the hurricane center said. It should pass south of Atlantic Canada this weekend.
Erin continues to grow in size, with hurricane-force winds extending 105 miles out from the center and tropical-storm-force winds 320 miles out from the center.
The storm sent large waves spilling over dunes and onto parts of North Carolina’s Outer Banks on Wednesday, after a state of emergency was declared throughout the state on Tuesday and evacuation orders were in place for counties on the coast.
Videos posted to social media and verified by NBC News show aerial shots of Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina, where massive waves are seen washing onto the shore.
Also on Tuesday, several states, including New Jersey and New York, where residents were told to stay out of the water.
