Two homes on North Carolina's Outer Banks sit precariously in high waves generated by Hurricane Erin with their days seemingly numbered.

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.

Dangerous rip currents are expected along the U.S. East Coast as Hurricane Erin grows in size this week, the National Hurricane Center said Tuesday.

While Erin is unlikely to make landfall along the East Coast before turning farther out to sea, authorities expect its large swells will cut off roads to villages and vacation homes on North Carolina’s Outer Banks and whip up life-threatening rip currents from Florida to New England.

The Category 2 hurricane saw its winds weaken to as low as 100 mph on Aug. 19 as its north side battled winds, but the National Hurricane Center said early on Aug. 20 that the storm had reformed an inner eye wall, and a Hurricane Hunter mission this morning is expected to help the center determine if winds have increased in response.

By Rich McKay (Reuters) -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.

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. Dare County has two primary evacuation routes: U.S. 64 West and U.S. 158 North.

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

North Carolina’s coastal communities are already seeing storm-related flooding. Here’s what meteorologists expect on Wednesday, Aug. 20.

Hurricane Erin was a Category 4 storm again Monday morning and is expected to grow even larger and stronger, according to the latest advisory from the National Hurricane Center. Although Erin is forecast to move north between the U.S. and Bermuda, life-threatening surf and rip currents are likely across the Atlantic coast from Florida to Canada.