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4h ago

Hurricane Erin Strengthens to Category 4: Mandatory Evacuations Ordered for N.C. Barrier Islands

Local officials have staged staggered evacuations on Hatteras and Ocracoke islands following a forecast that the offshore Category 4 hurricane will turn north between Bermuda and the U.S. East Coast.

People fish along the shore in Arecibo, Puerto Rico, as Hurricane Erin brings rains to the island, Sunday, Aug. 17, 2025. (AP Photo/Alejandro Granadillo)
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A house is seen partially flooded as 3 Hurricane Erin leaves the region in Guayama, Puerto Rico on August 17, 2025.

Overview

  • Erin re-intensified to a Category 4 hurricane with sustained winds near 130 mph, and the National Hurricane Center warns additional strengthening is possible before a northward shift.
  • Dare County designated Hatteras Island Zone A for evacuation beginning Monday for visitors and Tuesday for residents, while Hyde County ordered immediate departure for Ocracoke visitors and a 6 a.m. Tuesday evacuation for locals.
  • Coastal flooding and ocean overwash are expected from August 19 through 21, with sections of N.C. Highway 12 likely to become impassable and isolate barrier-island communities.
  • Despite tracking offshore, Erin’s expanding wind field is already generating life-threatening surf and rip currents along the U.S. East Coast, Bermuda, the Bahamas and Atlantic Canada.
  • The National Hurricane Center is monitoring a separate tropical wave with about a 50 percent chance of development within seven days, extending uncertainty in the Atlantic tropics.