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

Much of North Carolina’s Outer Banks region is under a tropical storm watch with Hurricane Erin expected to skirt the area Wednesday through Thursday, according to the National Hurricane Center.

While Erin won't hit the U.S. directly, the storm's biggest impact on the East Coast will be along the Outer Banks of North Carolina, where coastal flood watches, tropical storm watches and storm surge watches are in effect. The storm surge could be as high as 4 feet.

Island communities off the coast of North Carolina are bracing for flooding ahead of the year’s first Atlantic hurricane, Hurricane Erin. Although forecasters are confident that the storm won’t make direct landfall in the United States,

Erin briefly became a Category 5 hurricane over the weekend and weakened to Category 3 status as it moved north and west of Puerto Rico this weekend. It is now a Category 4 storm and will be moving more north in the next few days. A second disturbance could develop west of Erin later this week.

On North Carolina’s Outer Banks, barrier islands that stretch over 175 miles, coastal flooding was expected to begin Tuesday and continue through Thursday. Two of the four counties on the Outer

Erin isn't as intense as it once was. But its large size is what matters most. While it won't landfall, it will bring high surf and rip currents to much of the East Coast. And it could bring damaging surge flooding for some.

Hurricane Erin is poised to bring deadly rip currents to the entire US East Coast, as well as destructive waves and storm surge to North Carolina’s Outer Banks. Meanwhile, Atlantic hurricane season is hitting its stride,

Hurricane Erin was a Category 4 storm Monday morning and is expected to retain major hurricane status through the middle of the week.

Hurricane Erin, now a Category 2 hurricane, has prompted a tropical storm watch for North Carolina's Outer Banks and is expected to bring dangerous waves and rip currents to beaches along the East Coast. Here's the latest forecast: