Hurricane Irene soaks parts of Virginia while brushing our East Coast

Officials said Hurricane Irene in nearby will last for at least a few days as the storm faces north.

The storm has soaked a portion of the Atlantic coastline, including the North Carolina External Bank, a barrier island system.

The National Hurricane Center (NHC) said the tropical storm conditions will continue on Thursday and begin to reach Virginia. In parts of New England, warnings include strong winds.

Although Erin still does not expect to reach the land, its impact will still be felt in the threat of closed beaches and flooding and road closures.

The NHC notes that it remains a “large and growing hurricane” with a maximum sustained wind of 105mph (165km/h).

“In the next few days, life-threatening surfing and tearing currents will stir up and down in the next few days,” another organization’s official, the National Weather Service (NWS), wrote in its own update.

The tearing current is a body of water flowing to the sea, which has the potential to drag humans with it, and the quote for Dangerous Surf describes a powerful wave that could post another threat to the swimmer.

NWS recommends: “Explors should follow the advice of lifeguards, local authorities and beach warning flags.”

U.S. weather experts have previously warned that the 2025 hurricane season, which will take place from June 1 to November 30, could see above-average storms.

Warmer sea temperatures – more likely due to climate change – are usually favorable atmospheric conditions, which are behind the predictions.

Meanwhile, cuts in U.S. research are raising concerns about the ability to track and prepare for these often deadly storms.

In North Carolina, which is still recovering from Hurricane Helen last year, Gov. Josh Stein declared a state of emergency earlier this week.

Stein begged swimmers to stop entering the coastal waters after he needed to be rescued Monday near Wrightsville Beach.

In the Outshore Bank, communities in Hartlas and Okracock were evacuated due to concerns that they would be disconnected from other islands.

Carol Dillon, a 96-year-old motel owner, told BBC’s U.S. partner CBS News, “At my age, you’ll take it.”

But she fears that the storm will swallow up the land where the house is built. “It’s our livelihood,” she explained. “We may lose two buildings in the water now. I hope we won’t – I do a lot of prayers.”

Erin was the first hurricane of the 2025 Atlantic Season, reaching category 5 status on Saturday. Its strength has fluctuated since then and has been designated in two categories.

In the passing of the storm, Turks and Caicos are British overseas territory, authorities suspended public services on the largest island.

According to local energy company Luma, more than 150,000 people have no electricity on the territory of the U.S. island after heavy winds damaged wires.