Hurricane Earl hit North Carolina's coast with rain, winds and heavy surf today before moving up the US eastern seaboard toward New England and Canada.
The impact of the Category 2 hurricane, still packing top sustained winds of 165km/h. appeared to be less than originally expected as it moved north parallel to the US Atlantic coast. It has been downgraded from a Category 4 hurricane.
"The good news is that we dodged the bullet," North Carolina Governor Bev Perdue told CNN.
"The storm proved to be not a dangerous storm," she said, adding that only minimal damage had been reported apart from beach erosion from surging waves on North Carolina's Outer Banks low-lying barrier islands.
The US Census Bureau estimated 26 million people in coastal counties from North Carolina to Maine could feel Earl's effects by the weekend. At least 100,000 people were ordered to leave North Carolina's Outer Banks islands as Earl approached the Atlantic shore.
The storm continued to lash the Outer Banks with tropical force winds and heavy rains this morning. Flooding was reported in at least one island village, along with scattered power outages. Waves surged over at least one road linking the islands.
Forecasters said tropical storm-force winds were likely to reach the coast from Virginia northward to Massachusetts later today. A hurricane warning was in effect for Massachusetts, eastward around Cape Cod, including Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket Island.
Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick declared a state of emergency, an administrative step that speeds storm relief.
While a direct US landfall was not expected, Earl is forecast to spin northward along the coast during the Labor Day holiday weekend marking the end of the summer holiday season.
Forecasters warned that hurricane-force winds from Earl still extended out 110 km from its centre, so it would not necessarily require a direct landfall to inflict damage from strong wind and high seas.
A gradual weakening was forecast during the next 24 to 36 hours but Earl was expected to remain a hurricane as it turned toward the northeast and headed for southeastern New England.
Reuters