Hurricane Erin strikes the Atlantic Coast with deadly surfing and rifts
Hurricane Erin causes dangerous surfing and rifts along the Atlantic coast, prompting many water rescues and beach closures.
Tourists, which have become a beach for hundreds of thousands, were paying close attention to the massive Hurricane Erin on Tuesday. Massive waves and rough surf, driven by powerful storms, were expected to smack the Atlantic coast from Central Florida to Canada.
Evacuations are underway along parts of North Carolina’s outer bank, making it a major draw for vacationers every summer. Erin’s expected high surge and more than 10 feet of waves have urged people to stay away from the ocean to avoid the fatal surfing conditions expected until at least Thursday.
Dare County officials warned that roads, including the main exit route, could soon be overwhelmed by the water.
“Dare County is under an emergency and mandatory evacuation orders are in effect on Hatteras Island,” the county posted on social media. “NC Highway. Please note that 12 may not be able to pass by August 19th by 5pm.”
Nearby Hyde County enacted a mandatory evacuation order on Ocracoke Island on Tuesday.
Category 3 Hurricane Erin had slowed down to a 7 mph crawl early Tuesday with gusts of 155 mph and 115 mph winds, which slowed to a 7 mph crawl to combat headwinds, the National Hurricane Centre said. The storm appeared to be on a long, slow, slow cruise.
Still, Erin’s massive, expanding wind fields are expected to strike coastal areas, especially along the outer banks, a barrier island that borders the North Carolina coast.
At 5am on Tuesday, Erin was about 675 miles southwest of Bermuda and 750 miles south-southeast of Cape Hatteras. It is expected that they will be on the road between the two on Thursday.
“Erin predicts that he will grow bigger as he moves around the western Atlantic throughout the week,” wrote Robbie Berg, a meteorologist at the National Hurricane Centre, in a public recommendation. “Dangerous RIP current expected along the beaches on the East Coast of the US”
Erin’s strength could still fluctuate before it finally begins to finish later in the week, according to the centre’s forecast.
Lifeguards have rescued dozens of people along the east coast beaches, despite Hurricane Erin moving hundreds of miles offshore. North Carolina officials said at least 60 people were rescued from the RIP current at Wrightsville Beach, prompting non-swim orders for the remainder of the week, according to a report from Wilmington Star-News, part of the USA Today network.
The National Weather Service in Charleston, South Carolina, said at least dozens of people were rescued from RIP currents on beaches in South Carolina and Georgia on August 18th.
The threat resides above and below the entire East Coast, hurricane predictors said. The beach, which is north as Massachusetts, is closed to swimmers due to rough waves. In Atlantic City, New Jersey, officials said beach fans are restricted to getting deep into the water and are banned from using boogie boards. Click here for details.
– – Johnny Sanchuchi
Tropical storms and storm surge clocks were effective in the Outer Bank and parts of the North Carolina coast. The Hurricane Center warned that if Erin pushed north, the storm surge could cause water to rise two to four feet above the dry ground along the outer bank.
Some roads may remain impassable in some places for several days. Dare County announced Tuesday that transportation will be available to Warren County shelters for DARE residents whose transport is inaccessible to transport.
Hurricane Erin moves northwest through the Atlantic Ocean
Hurricane Erin is weakened, but the largest sustained wind is a powerful Category 3 storm with 115 mph, moving northwest at seven miles.
Scripps News -WPTV West Palm Beach
“Individuals evacuating by bus must bring their clothes and medicines for seven days,” the county said in a statement. Shelters said they could be used for dogs and cats, and owners said these pets could be transported by bus.
According to the county’s website, Dare County’s permanent population is around 37,000, but from June to August it has a population of about 225,000 to 300,000.
“The town of Kill Devil Hills really said it the best: ‘Misinformation spreads faster than a storm,'” the county told social media. Several Facebook accounts said they were sharing misinformation surrounding Hurricane Erin.
“The photos shown here are examples of images and videos generated by erroneous AI circulating,” the post warned. “Please follow and let us know about reliable sources for information.”
In Asbury Park, New Jersey, boats were tied up and fishing trips were cancelled or delayed this week. Erin’s swell could see waves building up 22 feet in the underwater Hudson Canyon, spreading hundreds of miles across the coast of New Jersey and New York, predictors said.
The timing isn’t good – the Mid-Atlantic fishing competition is scheduled to run from August 17th to 21st, with over $3.2 million in cash payments in jeopardy. The event began amid many fanfares in Cape May, New Jersey and Ocean City, Maryland. For the safety of tournament participants, staff, sponsors and venues, the contest director announced that the competition will be held for an extra day until Saturday.
“Tournament staff are closely monitoring all aspects and are monitoring the impact of the storm on the event,” a statement on the competition website said. “We take date changes very seriously, but please don’t see how to avoid them under these exceptional circumstances.”
– – Danradell, Asbury Park Press
Warned by Hurricane Center Director Michael Brennan, the dangerous situation in a surf zone with large, destroyed waves, from eastern Florida to Canada’s Atlantic coast, on Tuesday, is projected.
Brennan appeals to American residents to take Erin’s potential coastal impact seriously, despite sparing the country from landing in person. Offshore waves can be over 20-30 feet tall.
The tide is also expected to bring southern water levels along the coast further south, the Weather Service warns.
“Being at the ocean wouldn’t be a safe environment,” Brennan said.
The slow movements mean that North Carolina coastal areas are expected to feel the effects of the ocean for several days, according to the Newport/Morehead City Weather Service. Forced evacuations were issued on August 18th for Hatteras Island and Ocracoke Island.
At the nearest point, Erin is expected to be about 200 miles from Cape Hatteras. On August 18th, Erin had an average diameter of about 355 miles, but Hurricane Center data shows that the storm was creating a 10-foot ocean over an area of the Atlantic, about 645 miles in diameter. The winds of the force of the hurricane extend outwards from the center up to 80 miles, with the largest distance on the east side of the storm.
Further south along the North Carolina coast, emergency officials rescued at least 60 people caught up in RIP currents and heavy surfing at Wrightville Beach on August 18, urging a “no swimming” recommendation until Friday.
Another tropical wave following Erin has been given a 60% chance of becoming a tropical storm over the next seven days, according to the Hurricane Center. The third obstruction has just moved from the West African coast, but is expected to encounter hostile circumstances that could limit further development.
Erin formed from tropical waves that migrated across the Cabo Verde Islands on August 11th. By August 15th, it was a hurricane, quickly joining the ranks of the fastest, violent hurricanes in Atlantic history, increasing wind by 85 mph in about 21 hours.
It spared the islands primarily along the eastern Caribbean, but soaked up to eight inches of rain in Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands and parts of the Bahamas in the southeast. The winds have caused widespread power outages in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.
While the Atlantic hurricane season, which began on June 1, is expected to be more active than usual, the center’s Hurricane Specialist branch chief said Erin’s formation has nothing to do with what could happen later in the season.
Also, Leroy Silvers, a research scientist at Colorado State University, noted that it would require one intense landing hurricane to make it a disastrous season.
