Erin has become the first hurricane of the Atlantic season with strong waves and rip currents possible along the East Coast of the United States as early as next week.

Life-threatening storm surges and rip currents are forecast for much of the U.S. East Coast as Hurricane Erin takes a path just offshore. Here’s the latest tracking map.

The Tropical Storm Watch is extended northward along the U.S. Atlantic coast, and now stretches from Duck to Chincoteague. A Tropical Storm Warning is in effect south of Duck, to Beaufort Inlet, including the Pamlico and Albemarle Sounds.

After rapidly intensifying into a Category 5 storm on Saturday, Hurricane Erin has since been downgraded to a Category 4 system with sustained winds of 130 mph. However, it is expected to intensify and grow in size over the next few days.

Rip currents are the third leading cause of deaths from hurricanes, and they can happen on a sunny day hundreds of miles from the storm.

Hurricane Erin's higher tides and big waves are battering much of the East Coast, with the large storm prompting the expansion of tropical storm and coastal flooding advisories Wednesday. Beachfront property owners are bracing for the worst amid predictions of a storm surge of up to 4 feet and significant coastal erosion.