By John Sewer and Allen G. Breeder, Associated Press
RODANTHE, N.C. (AP) As Hurricane Erin drew closer Wednesday, coastal residents attempting to enjoy the final summer waves saw rip current warnings, shuttered beaches, and in some cases, already dangerous surf from Florida to New England.
Forecasters are still optimistic that the huge storm’s center will remain well offshore, but the outer fringes are predicted to deliver strong gusts, massive swells, and potentially fatal rip currents into Friday.Forecasters from the National Weather Service warned Wednesday that the East Coast would be battered by 100 mph gusts and potentially fatal surf.
New York Governor Kathy Hochul ordered three state beaches on Long Island to ban swimming until Thursday, and New York City closed its beaches to swimmers on Wednesday and Thursday. Some Delaware communities have cut off access to the water, and a number of beaches in New Jersey will also be temporarily closed.
Later this week, Nantucket Island off Massachusetts may experience waves of over ten feet. However, evacuations have been ordered along the North Carolina Outer Banks barrier islands, which pose the greatest threat.
With tropical storm winds extending 265 miles from its center, Erin has grown into an exceptionally enormous and unnerving storm. Forecasters predict that when it twists north and passes through the Atlantic, its size will increase.
People were warned about the dangers of rip currents by Bob Oravec, the primary National Weather Service forecaster in College Park, Maryland. It’s not safe under the current circumstances, even if someone believes they know how to handle a rip current.
In a phone interview, he stated that you might be as informed as you wanted. It may still be harmful.
Before its anticipated turn toward Bermuda, it pounded portions of the Bahamas and the Turks and Caicos Islands on Tuesday, causing government services to be suspended and citizens to be told to stay at home.
Bermuda, North Carolina, and Virginia were all under tropical storm watches.
The National storm Center in Miami reported that Erin was a Category 2 storm with maximum sustained winds of about 100 mph, having lost some of its intensity from earlier days. It located roughly 400 miles southeast of Cape Hatteras in North Carolina.
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Erin’s storm surge could clog roadways on the Outer Banks with 15-foot waves. On the islands of Hatteras and Ocracoke, mandatory evacuations were issued. Since Monday, more than 2,200 passengers have taken the ferry out of Ocracoke.
Governor Josh Stein of North Carolina proclaimed a state of emergency Tuesday and advised coastal residents to be ready to leave. The local power company on Ocracoke had vehicles available to respond to downed cables, and bulldozers were used to shore up the dunes.
The owners of a pier removed a few planks in the hopes that the storm surge would pass through without breaking it up, and some side roads on Hatteras had already experienced some water.
Despite the fact that memories of Hurricane Dorian in 2019, when Ocracoke was flooded by seven feet of water, the majority of locals chose to remain, according to county commissioner Randal Mathews.
According to Tom Newsom, who operates fishing charters on Hatteras, he has lived there for nearly 40 years and has never had to leave. Nor was he going to this time.
He described this hurricane as “a nor easter on steroids” in comparison to others he had witnessed.
The narrow strip of low-lying barrier islands that protrude into the Atlantic, known as the Outer Banks, is becoming more susceptible to storm surges. Some routes may become impassable for days if portions of the main highway are washed out. Additionally, the loss of protecting dunes and ongoing beach erosion may jeopardize scores of beach homes already damaged, according to Cape Hatteras National Seashore superintendent David Hallac.
In the far south, where ocean levels might reach three feet above average high tides for several days, several beach access points were closed but no evacuations were ordered.
Warmer waters are making it considerably more likely for Atlantic hurricanes to quickly build into strong, destructive storms, according to climate experts. When Hurricane Lee roared offshore over the Atlantic two years ago, it expanded surprisingly quickly, producing rip currents and violent storms.
From Toledo, Ohio, Seewer provided a report. Associated Press reporters Julie Walker in New York, Hallie Golden in Seattle, Leah Willingham in Boston, Safiyah Riddle in Montgomery, Alabama; Dave Collins in Hartford, Connecticut; Jeffrey Collins in Columbia, South Carolina; Gary Robertson in Raleigh, North Carolina; and Ben Finley in Norfolk, Virginia, all contributed.
