The storm is bringing dangerous conditions to parts of the coast on Wednesday, but will then turn away from the United States.

Hurricane Erin is expected to bring large ocean swells and life-threatening rip currents to North Carolina's coast. Coastal flooding, river rise and road washout are also possible. Waves could reach between 20 to 25 feet high.

A tropical storm warning has been issued for North Carolina as Hurricane Erin churns up the east coast of the U.S. as a Category 2 storm.

Meteorologists are closely tracking the projected path and forecast of Hurricane Erin, which is the first hurricane to develop over the Atlantic this year.

Hurricane Erin, now a Category 2 storm, has triggered a state of emergency in North Carolina, where residents and visitors along the Outer Banks are under evacuation orders. The Outer Banks is also under a tropical storm warning; Erin is forecast to hit the islands with heavy rain and rough winds on Wednesday night.

People in the Outer Banks should shelter in place, authorities said. Meanwhile, life-threatening rip currents are likely at beaches along the East Coast, according to forecasters.

Residents across North Carolina’s Outer Banks and coast braced for flooding from storm surge and powerful winds Wednesday as Hurricane Erin churned hundreds of miles away in the Atlantic Ocean.

Hurricane Erin, churning north in the Atlantic hundreds of miles offshore, is expected to trigger a dangerous storm surge and tropical storm conditions on Wednesday along North Carolina’s Outer Banks and other stretches of the U.

As of 7 a.m. CDT Wednesday, the center of Category 2 Hurricane Erin was located about 400 miles south-southeast of Cape Hatteras, N.C., or 560 miles west-southwest of Bermuda, and was tracking to the north-northwest at 13 mph. Erin’s sustained winds were 100 mph, making it a Category 2 storm.

A massive Hurricane Erin churns off the East Coast, bringing dangerous waves to vulnerable areas along the North Carolina coast. Here's the latest.

Hurricane Erin is tracking northwest between the U.S. East Coast and Bermuda, bringing dangerous surf and life-threatening rip currents to Florida and the Carolinas through midweek.