Weather
Hurricane Erin Brings Dangerous Rip Currents, Waves, Flood Risk To VA
Hurricane Erin is passing along the Virginia coast Thursday, bringing a risk of 10-foot waves, tidal flooding and dangerous rip currents.
Hurricane Erin is bringing tidal flooding, dangerous rip currents, big waves and strong winds to the coast of Virginia. National Hurricane Center forecasters expect tropical storm conditions on the Virginia coast Thursday.
As of Thursday morning, Erin is a category 2 hurricane with maximum sustained winds of 105 mph located about 200 miles off the North Carolina coast. According to the National Hurricane Center, Erin is turning toward the northeast and will continue to bring life-threatening surf and rip currents to the East Coast over the next several days. Wind gusts to tropical storm force winds may occur along the Mid-Atlantic to New England coast through early Friday.
According to AccuWeather, tropical storm conditions can appear 265 miles from the hurricane's eye, and hurricane conditions can reach 90 miles from the eye.
Find out what's happening in Woodbridgefor free with the latest updates from Patch.
The coast of Virginia, including Virginia Beach and the Eastern Shore, are under a tropical storm warning. The National Weather Service in Wakefield says storm impacts like gusty winds, moderate to localized major tidal flooding, strong rip currents and beach erosion could be limited to the coast Thursday into the night.
Wave heights will average 5 to 10 feet along the southern Atlantic and mid-Atlantic coasts into Thursday night, AccuWeather said. However, waves could reach 10-20 feet along the coast of North Carolina to Virginia.
Find out what's happening in Woodbridgefor free with the latest updates from Patch.
10am conditions round-up: Map of current wind gusts across the area, cameras showing large waves along OBX and wave run-up to the Ocean City Boardwalk, and current satellite imagery of Erin. If you see any flooding, please let us know! Don't drive across any flooded roads! pic.twitter.com/Ju9Q8CIiV2
— NWS Wakefield (@NWSWakefieldVA) August 21, 2025
On parts of the Eastern Shore and Virginia Beach, forecasters call for 20 to 30 mph winds, with gusts up to 45 mph. Localized storm surge is possible, with 1 to 3 feet of water above ground in surge-prone areas until Friday evening.
Other southeastern Virginia communities near the coast are under a coastal flood warning until 5 p.m. Friday. These areas could see 1 to 3 feet of water above ground level in low-lying areas near shorelines and tidal waters.
The winds are not as intense as when Erin was a category 5 storm last weekend. However, AccuWeather says the storm's wind can still produce the stronger waves that move toward the coastline.
Despite the storm being hundreds of miles away from Virginia, forecasters observed Erin producing unsafe surf conditions.
This video from First Street Jetty, Virginia Beach this morning illustrates the power of even distant storms like Erin as it passes around 400 miles off the U.S. East Coast. Dangerous surf will be seen along much of the coastline from Maine to Florida through the day.… pic.twitter.com/OlCdU8BoKY
— National Weather Service (@NWS) August 21, 2025
National Hurricane Center forecasters believe the chances of Erin strengthening are all but gone as the atmosphere stabilizes. The hurricane may experience slow weakening over the next 36 hours, followed by steady weakening. Erin could become a post-tropical cyclone in as soon as 36 to 48 hours.
National Weather Service Forecast For NoVA, D.C. Region
Thursday: Mostly cloudy, with a high near 76. Northeast wind around 14 mph, with gusts as high as 22 mph. At night, mostly cloudy, then gradually becoming mostly clear, with a low around 66. North wind 7 to 9 mph.
Friday: Sunny, with a high near 83. North wind around 7 mph. At night, clear, with a low around 65. Southeast wind around 7 mph becoming south after midnight.
Saturday: Sunny, with a high near 84. South wind 5 to 11 mph. At night, partly cloudy, with a low around 69.
Sunday: A chance of showers. Partly sunny, with a high near 85. Chance of precipitation is 50 percent. At night, a chance of showers before 2 a.m. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 69. Chance of precipitation is 40 percent at night.
Monday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 84 and partly cloudy at night, with a low around 64.
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