(The Center Square) – Category 2 Hurricane Erin moved northwest at 7 mph about 720 miles to the southeast of Cape Hatteras on Tuesday morning.
Still forecast to be turning away from the shoreline of North Carolina on Thursday, the National Hurricane Center said a storm surge watch is in effect from Cape Lookout to Duck; and a tropical storm watch is in effect from the Beaufort Inlet to Duck inclusive of the Pamlico Sound.
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Closer to its 8 a.m. position, a tropical storm warning was in effect for the Turks and Caicos Islands and Southeast Bahamas, and a tropical storm watch was in effect for the Central Bahamas.
The forecast of the Hurricane Center said, “A turn toward the north-northwest with an increase in forward speed is expected today, followed by a northward motion on Wednesday and then a northeastward motion on Thursday. On the forecast track, the center of Erin will pass to the east of the Bahamas today and tonight and then move over the western Atlantic between the U.S. East Coast and Bermuda on Wednesday and Thursday.”
Hurricane force winds, meaning sustained 74 mph or greater, extend up to 80 miles from the center. Tropical storm force winds, meaning sustained 39 mph or greater, extend up to 205 miles out.
Mandatory evacuations have been issued for Ocracoke Island in Hyde County and Hatteras Island in Dare County. Each county has declared an emergency.
Multiple published reports put the number of swimmers rescued between 60 and 70 at Wrightsville Beach near Wilmington on Monday. This was due to rip currents. Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune planned to close Onslow Beach on Tuesday.
N.C. 12, the famed 148-mile roadway linking peninsulas and islands of the Outer Banks, is likely to go under water and parts could wash away – as often happens with hurricanes.
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NC12 begins at U.S. 70 at the community of Sea Level and runs to a point just north of Corolla and south of the Currituck Banks North Carolina National Estuarine Research Reserve. Two ferries, Hatteras Island to Ocracoke Island and Cedar Island to Ocracoke Island, are part of the route.
The storm’s miss of the state is particularly welcome in light of Hurricane Helene. Recovery from that storm is in its 47th week. Helene killed 107 in the state, 236 across seven states in the South, and caused an estimated $60 billion in damage to North Carolina.