The US state of New Jersey has declared a state of emergency as Hurricane Erin threatens to cause coastal flooding, rip currents and gale-force gusts along the Atlantic coasts of the US and Canada.
Early on Friday, the National Hurricane Center (NHC) stressed that conditions still posed a threat to life – even as the storm continued to drift away from North America.
The first hurricane of the Atlantic season is weakening and will soon lose its status, before bringing rain to the UK next week.
In the meantime, a storm surge up to a metre (3ft) in height is possible in US states such as Rhode Island and Virginia, as well as Canada’s Atlantic coast.
As a result, Erin has brought stormy conditions up and down the US east coast, causing beach and road closures despite not making landfall at any point.
New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy made his emergency declaration on Thursday afternoon – citing high winds, large waves and flooding expected to strike parts of the state.
“Over the past couple of days, we have seen the effects of Hurricane Erin along the Jersey Shore in the form of dangerous rip tides. Today and tomorrow will be no exception,” Murphy said.
Among the other regions that can expect strong gusts are Massachusetts in the US, and Nova Scotia and Newfoundland in Canada, the NHC said.
Beachgoers were earlier advised not to swim at most US east-coast beaches, as the NHC warned of rip currents. These are bodies of water that flows out to sea, potentially dragging humans with them.
US weather experts have previously warned that the 2025 hurricane season, which runs from 1 June to 30 November, could have an above-average number of storms.
Warmer sea temperatures – made more likely by climate change – and generally favourable atmospheric conditions are behind the forecast.
At the same time, cuts to American research are raising fears about the ability to track and prepare for these often deadly storms.
In the US state of North Carolina, which is still recovering from last year’s Hurricane Helene, another emergency was declared earlier in the week by Governor Josh Stein.
Stein implored swimmers to stop entering waters off the coast after dozens of people needed to be rescued off Wrightsville Beach on Monday.
A 96-year-old motel owner on Hatteras, Carol Dillon, told the BBC’s US partner CBS News that “at my age, you take what comes”.
But she feared that the storm could eat away at the land on which her premises was built. “This is our livelihood,” she explained. “We could lose those two buildings that are in the water right now. I’m hoping we won’t – I do a lot of praying.”
Erin, the first hurricane of the 2025 Atlantic season, reached category five status on Saturday, and has gradually weakened since then.
