The Ocean City Beach Patrol has closed the ocean to swimming, wading and surfing Tuesday as tropical storm activity off the coast brings dangerous conditions to the resort town.

Powerful Hurricane Erin to bring high seas, big waves, rip currents and rough surf as it moves between the United States and Bermuda.

Forecasts nudge Erin's likely path to the west, increasing the risks at U.S. beaches. Tropical storm conditions are expected in North Carolina's Outer Banks starting late Wednesday.

Two more tropical systems trail Hurricane Erin, which is following a projected course that brushes past the East Coast without making landfall.

The storm has already prompted evacuation orders on North Carolina's Outer Banks and warnings about dangerous rip currents and swells along the East Coast.

While Erin is expected to take a northward turn in the Atlantic, a new system off the coast of Africa has the National Hurricane Center's attention.

Powerful Hurricane Erin has undergone a period of astonishingly rapid intensification — a phenomenon that has become far more common in recent years as the planet warms. It was a rare Category 5 for a time Saturday before becoming a Category 4,

The storm will remain a major hurricane through the middle of the week, according to the National Hurricane Center.